Life with Gaara
by The immortal sage
Summary: Refusing to continue fighting in a pointless war Gaara and Hinata, two ninjas on opposite sides who have found love, leave behind a life full of violence, death and suffering. Two years after Gaara and Hinata settle in a tiny peaceful village far away from the terror of war, news of the war ending reaches them. Can they return and pick up the pieces? (Post war, AU)
1. chapter 1

**Life with Gaara**

**Chapter 1**

"When it is peace, then we may view again

With new won eyes each other's truer form

We'll grasp firm hands and laugh at the old pain,

When it is peace. But until peace, the storm rages

The darkness and the thunder and the rain. " - Charles Hamilton Sorley

* * *

Five years . It had been five years since Hinata Hyuga had last set foot in Konoha.

On some days, in the dead of night or under the warm rays of day Hinata would find herself reminiscing about life in Konoha . It would only take a smell , a sound or a sight and her mind would go back to Konoha.

She would find herself recalling her troubled youth . She would remember the lonely days in the Hyuga manor, the complicated relationship she shared with her younger sister Hanabi and she would remember her over protective brother-figure Ko . She would remember her cold father.

Sometimes the memories were pleasant . Sometimes she would recall memories of her beloved family - the one that she wasn't bound to by blood. Those people were more like family to her than her blood relatives. Shino, Kiba , Kurenai and as time went on Shikamaru and Choji and Ino had become her true family.

On somedays she recalled her genin days . She recalled the time spent on the training fields and on missions. In those days the missions were not life threatening and their hands had not yet been stained with the blood of many .She missed those days .

Unfortunately things would never return to the way they were before. She would never sit with her team along with Asuma s' team and enjoy a nice barbecue at Choji s' favourite barbecue establishment. She doubted she would ever witness the epic verbal clashes that used to happen between Kiba and Ino .

Asuma and Kurenai would string their teams along on their dates. On the surface it had seemed as if the get-togethers were merely attempts to forge stronger friendships among Kurenai abd Asuma s' respective teams but even Kiba ,who was often times dense, saw past the facade.

That chapter of their lives was closed and at some point all of them had realised that chapter of their lives was closed for good . Those days were over and they were never coming back. The fact that Asuma s' name was etched on the memorial stone cemented that fact.

She remembered the times she would lounge with Kiba , Shino and Akamaru underneath the shade of an old tree by the training fields . They would often sit under the shade of that tree after training .

The bond between her team had grown stronger underneath that tree. They had talked about their dreams and desires . Sometimes they would speak about the latest happenings of the village, in those days Kiba had been a glutton for gossip . On some days Kiba and Shino would argue about meaningless things. Kiba s' temper would flare when Shino would quietly but stubbornly disagree with him. Kiba hated to be wrong . He would rather carry on with an unnecessary argument than admit that his beliefs or ideas were illogical and presumptuous as Shino put it . Hinata would sometimes have to step in to break up the fighting when tempers had flared too high.

Even though they hadn't realised it at the time life had been perfect. They had not known those were the times that they would look back to when it seemed as if only darkness surrounded their came and destroyed nearly every good thing in their lives.

It destroyed bonds , separated loved ones and changed people. Hinata sometimes wondered if she would ever cross paths with Kiba and Shino again.

In the beginning of the war her team had made a pact to regularly meet at their spot beneath the old tree where they had bonded in their genin days. Shino had been the one to make the suggestion. Although none of them had said it aloud they all knew that making an effort to continue meeting up was merely a desperate attempt to maintain a small sense of normalcy in their lives as their world spiralled into madness.

So whenever they had been all present in the village and had been free from duties they would meet at the old tree.

They would catch up and for a moment they would act as if the war was not destroying their lives.

For seasons they had laughed underneath that tree . Shino and Kiba would argue like they did in their genin days and Hinata would play the peacemaker . Kiba would confidently declare to Hinata that he would make her his wife one day. It would feel as if everything was going to be alright.

A lot was said underneath that tree . They would voice their frustration about the war underneath that tree . Sometimes when the load of war felt too great to bear they would just sit in contemplative silence underneath the tree . Tears had been shed underneath that tree , they had shared their inner turmoil with one another beneath that old tree by the training fields.

They had mourned underneath that old tree and comforted each other underneath that old tree. They had drawn strength from each other underneath the shade of that old tree.

It was underneath that tree that Shino became uncharacteristically vocal about his feelings whenever he felt troubled . Whenever Hinata needed release she would cry her heart out and her teammates would hold her hands.

In the beginning they had met up a few times a week . As time went on they started meeting once a week then once a week became once a month . As the war escalated they started having less and less time to meet . Before long they would only meet once in a couple of months.

One day in the later stages of the war Hinata had realised that nearly two years had passed since they had last sat together underneath the old tree by the training fields. Sadly those that had died were not the only ones that the war had taken from her.

Food was also a powerful trigger when it came to remembering the past . Ramen would remind her of a young boy from her childhood .A boy who who had the resolve of steel. A boy that had always strived to see the best in people . He had taught himself to expect the best from people even from the worst of them . He had taught her to believe in herself at a time when she had felt useless . His words had helped her become the kunoichi she was today.

In the end the boy had stopped expecting the best out of people. Hinata had saw it in the way he had run down his enemies on the battlefield - the boy had stopped believing that people could come together and live in peace and harmony. He had become tainted and cynical like the rest of them and that had crushed Hinata. She still remembered the day she shed tears after seeing the kind of person he had become. The boy was special, he was not supposed to start thinking like them .That had just been one of the many tragedies of the war.

The war had changed everyone and everything . In the end Hinata had been barely able to recognise the people she had grown up with . It was their eyes that had made them nearly unrecognisable . She was sure that whenever her friends had looked into her eyes they also had trouble recognising her.

At times Hinata would miss her home. The people of Konoha were warm , kind and the weather was pleasant. The aura of warmth that surrounded Konoha and its people was hard to find in a shinobi village . Even before the war , hidden villages like Rain had a despondent aura while villages like Suna and Kiri had a cold aura. A warm aura was hard to find in hidden villages.

Although the last time Hinata had been in Konoha it had not felt like it used to. The village s' aura had lost much of its warmth. That's what happens when people become despondent because of the fighting .The war had taken a gigantic toll on the shinobi of Konoha. The civilians had also not been spared . Dwindling resources , economic instability , increased poverty and civil unrest had been but a few of the effects of war. What made it worse is that this war had now lasted longer than the three wars before it. It was a nightmare that had no end.

Hinata did not understand why the clashing villages could not call an end to the fighting The war had carried on for far too long , too much had been lost.

Gaara believed that the longer a war continued the harder it became to end it . Gaara reasoned that as a war progressed the pain that the soldiers felt because of their fallen comrades increase , the hatred between the two sides deepened and the leaders of the villages only became more vengeful and bloodthirsty.

Hatred is like a seed . Every battle that is lost , every comrade that is mercilessly cut down waters that seed until that seed becomes a gigantic tree that cannot be easily cut down. At some point it became difficult for the people who were fighting to stop fighting.

" War is addictive " , he liked to say.

"The more you take part in it the more you want it . Seeing the ground painted red with the blood of your enemies becomes exciting. " .

He said he understood it well because of his past. Gaara had revealed to her one day that in the days of his madness the more blood he had shed the more blood he wanted to shed. He said war was an unbreakable chain .

" But they can stop " , Hinata once argued .

" Gaara you broke the cycle . You have a demon inside you that made you crave killing , yet you were able to break the cycle of bloodshed ."

"That's the thing Hinata . I had you . That's why I was able to break the cycle ." Gaara had replied.

She hated thinking about the past . Although doing so reminded her of all the good things that she had experienced back when their world wasn't such a dark place it also reminded her of everything she had lost . She had lost comrades , friends , her family , her home and a lot more to the war.

Not wanting to dwell on the past for too long Hinata closed the book that was in her hand and rose from the wooden chair that sat under the shade of a young tree. She had planned on reading the book but her mind had been too preoccupied with the past . She glanced at the sky . Seeing that the sun was getting low she walked home.

* * *

Hinata entered the little cozy kitchen of the cottage that she called home. She washed her hands and started heating the water that she would use to boil the rice . Gaara would be home soon.

She never could stop comparing this kitchen to the grand one that was at Hyuga manor . She never could get over the irony of how she , the once upon a time heiress of the Hyuga Clan, had fallen in love with a kitchen that would be considered by her clan to be beneath her.

Nowadays she did all sorts of things that would shock the clan .They would probably shake their heads in disappointment if they discovered that the Hyguga princess lived in such a modest home , cooked her own food, cleaned ,washed dishes and did her own laundry. They would probably collapse from not being able to cope with witnessing a disgrace of such magnitude .

Hinata was past the point of caring too much about other people s' opinions. That was a unnecessary burden to carry for people who had been through what she'd been through .

Rice would probably go well with fish. She had asked Gaara to bring along some fish when he came home . Hopefully her request hadn't slipped his mind. The merchants back in the village sold the freshest fish she had ever eaten . She had grown a liking for fish .

Fish often reminded her of Choji . For someone who was so passionate about food Choji had a surprising dislike of fish . She remembered how shocked she had been when she discovered that Choji hated fish . She had never thought that he could hate anything that was remotely food. Even her timid nature had not been enough to stop her from questioning him about his extreme dislike of fish.

Hinata had been recalling her childhood way too often as of late. Hinata preferred those memories to remain in the past . Remembering caused her too much pain. That chapter of life was over. She wanted to focus on living the life she now had.

Hinata leaned over the wooden countertop as she waited for the rice to cook . The black metal pot on top of the dark electrical stove whistled a high monotonous tune and the distinct aroma of rice filled the air .

She tapped a slow beat on the countertop. Today had been an uneventful day. It had been her day off from work . She hadn't set foot in the clinic the whole day and she hadn't been in a mood to visit anyone or even stroll around the village so boredom had infected her as swift as an airborne disease.

She had stayed all couped up in the cottage the whole morning and in the afternoon she had decided to go sit under the shade near the lake and read . It was unfortunate that she hadn't been able to read for long - her mind couldn't remain focused on what she was reading .

Atleast tomorrow she would be going back to work . She loved working at the clinic. Her working at a clinic in a village where the healing techniques were much less advanced than in the hidden villages assured her that leaving the war behind had helped her achieve a greater purpose in life. The effectiveness of the healers had improved by leaps and bounds after their arrival in this village - far less people were chronically sick and far less people died from sickness .Word spread quickly , before long even people from nearby villages started coming to their village for medical assistance. Helping others felt more rewarding than killing.

Suddenly she felt a presence behind her. Her muscles coiled in preparation . She could feel the adrenaline flowing through her veins as her heartbeat quickened. She quickly spun around , her pale fingertips glowing with brilliant blue chakra . She came face to face with a red haired man that had strikingly green eyes. The man s' face was slightly impassive and a tiny smirk was plastered on his face.

"Gaara I told you not to sneak up on me ! ", Hinata exclaimed in a high voice.

" What if I accidentally killed you ? ", she continued. Her cheeks had turned red in her exasperation.

Gaara merely moved closer and grabbed her by the waist , all the while staring into into her lavender-coloured eyes.

" Did I ever tell how beautiful you look when you are annoyed ? ", Gaara said.

" I'm being serious Gaara . You shouldn't sneak up on me . I can't control my instincts. What if I kill you one day? What would I do with myself? " , Hinata said as she looked up into his eyes.

" I'm sorry. I'll make my presence known when I come near you " , he said seriously.

" Also I highly doubt that you can get rid of me that easily Hinata " , Gaara said .

" I know . You are a very persistent man Gaara ", said Hinata in her mellow voice .

" And I still haven't forgotten that one time when my gentle fist almost killed you " , Hinata said as she looped her arms around his neck.

" I was being easy on you . I also had a cold " , Gaara countered.

" You Gaara of the desert had a cold " , Hinata said sarcastically. Gaara s' smirk became bigger.

Gaara looked down at Hinata with a faraway look in his eyes. Sometimes he wondered where he would be without this woman. He would probably be fighting somewhere far away, making the sky rain with the blood of his enemies . Maybe some powerful shinobi from Konoha or its allies would have finally slain him and his body would lie decaying on crimson soil, none of his countrymen having had the slightest thought to retrieve the body of the terrible sand demon.

She pulled him away from the darkness and guided him to the light . She had helped him find his sanity. He was what he was today because of her.

" A person like you shouldn't love a person like me Hinata . I don't deserve you ", Gaara said to her. Hinata lowered her gaze to his gray cotton shirt.

"Well I do love you Gaara so deal with it " , she said . Her tone was firm yet her voice never failed to retain its softness.

Gaara tipped her chin up and planted his chapped lips on her soft lips . She responded to his advances and started playing with his maroon hair . Gaara s' hair was only a few inches above his shoulders . It had been years since Hinata had seen him with short hair.

His hands were caressing her waist , slowly running up and down her sides. Hinata moved her hands down to his chest and started running them up and down his chest . Their lips danced in rythme. She liked the rough texture of his gray cotton shirt.

They soon separated for air. Gaara wrapped his arm around her shoulders and brought her to his chest . She laid her head against his chest and brought her ear to his beating heart. She loved feeling his strong heartbeat. They stood there in their little kitchen locked in embrace.

" How was your day ? " , Gaara said after a few moments. Hinata could feel the vibrations of his chest as he spoke.

" I kept remembering Konoha . I couldn't really do anything else " , Hinata told him.

Gaara remained silent. He took her hand in his , intertwined their fingers and squeezed her hand. Although no words were shared Hinata understood what he meant. She was grateful.

After a long while Hinata asked , " Did you bring along the fish I asked you to bring ? ".

She felt Gaara channel chakra and heard a faint plop as a wrapped bundle landed on the counter near the sink.

" Thanks. I better finish cooking. You must be hungry. "

She separated herself from Gaara and started turning away from him but he grabbed her wrist before she could completely get away and kissed her once more and then walked towards the bathroom. Hinata soon heard the shower running.

* * *

Hinata and Gaara set on their small wooden dinner table and ate their meal. Gaara told her about his day during the meal . He also told her that Mito , the village gossip and strangely the closet friend Hinata had in the village, would be bringing her son for a check-up tomorrow morning before she headed to the clinic .

After they finished eating Gaara took it upon himself to wash the dirty dishes along with the pots and pans.

As he was drying the dishes with a cloth Hinata came behind him and wrapped her arms around his middle.

" What's wrong ? " , Hinata whispered.

Hinata had noticed that something was bothering him during dinner. Although Gaara had engaged her in conversation like he usually did during dinner his behaviour had been off. After living with Gaara for so long Hinata could tell when something was bothering him. With him the signs were always subtle but they were there and she always noticed them.

Gaara kept on wiping the dishes .

" Gaara ? " , Hinata said.

" I think it's best if we sit down for this Hinata" , Gaara said .

Gaara put down the cloth and walked to the brown couch in the small living room and sat down . Hinata hesitantly followed.

Gaara s' sudden somber mood was worrying her . She had not seen Gaara this somber for a long time. His demeanor reminded her of a topic that she would rather not remember.

Gaara intertwined their fingers and looked into her eyes. His eyes caused her heart to quicken. They were rushing with many different emotions . The crease on his forehead and the tightened jaw made it seem as if he he had aged a few years in just a few seconds. He kept silently looking into her eyes and said nothing . Hinata was getting nervous.

" Gaara " , said Hinata . It sounded as if her voice had become trapped in her own throat.

" Hinata " , Gaara began.

" I received word about the war." , Gaara said.

Hinata s' heart started beating even faster. She felt the fine tiny hairs on the back of her neck rise .

Why would anything that had to do with the war concern them?

What could have happened that seemed to bother Gaara so much? They had decided to leave the war and everything that had to do with it behind. The war did not concern them anymore. Had Gaara changed his mind? Did he want to return to what they left behind and continue being part of a pointless cycle that only caused suffering and bloodshed? If he returned to the war on whose side would he fight? Would he kill more of her people? Did she expect him to betray his for her? Hinata waited for him to continue speaking with burning anticipation.

" A truce has been called between the villages. The war is over Hinata . "

* * *

A.N

Thank you for reading

I'll add the next chapter soon.

Please review . This is the first fanfiction I've written and I would really really really appreciate your feedback.

{The immortal sage }


	2. Chapter 2

**Life with Gaara**

**Chapter 2**

"And as you run away reality is getting nearer

And instead of changing you, you try to change the mirror

But what do you do when the mirror falls down?

Breaking apart as it hits the ground

And now you have nothing to hide behind

And now you need the courage you have yet to find

Because fear and sorrow are just emotions that play tricks on your mind"

* * *

Gaara woke up to the sensation of a warm body pressed against his side side and the sound of soft, deep breathing. They had stayed up late the previous night. He had wrapped his arms around Hinata and they had laid on the couch in silence for hours.

Gaara hadn't pestered her to say something about the news he had brought. She had only spoke hours after his revelation. She had only said that they should go to bed because she was tired.

He understood that it was difficult for Hinata to process the news. They had spent years fighting in the war. She had lost people she loved. She had once told him that she had done things that made her feel filthy no matter how many times she showered.

She had told him about how she had watched the life draining away from the eyes of people she had cut down .Some of them had been so young and just like her they had summoned all the courage in their hearts and had marched on to the battlefield to fight for their marched into battle willing to lay down their lives for their villages. Sadly none of them had truly been ready to die. She had seen the terrible fear in their eyes as they realised that they were dying and were never to return home.

She once told him that she had avoided killing her adversaries during battle but when she had no choice but to kill she had granted them instantaneous death. She had not been able to bear to listen to the desperate whispers of her victims as they pleaded with death not to take them away with tears in their eyes as they lied forsaken on crimson soil. Despite their pleas they had died anyway.

Gaara could not fathom how someone like Hinata could have endured the brutality of war and come out with her sanity intact. There were men who were much more resilient than her that had lost their minds to the war.

Hinata had witnessed gentle hearted friends turn into hardened killers who showed no remorse for killing.

He knew that her experiences were the reason why she sometimes couldn't sleep at night. She would sometimes wake him in the dead of the night with tears flowing down her face and she would ask him to hold her close.

She had seen young heavily pregnant women laying flowers on the graves of their dead husbands. She knew an old man from Konoha who had lost all three of his sons in one day. The old man had died a few days after being informed about the deaths of his sons. Their deaths did not even have a tiny meaningful effect on the war .The pain had been too much for the old man to bear.

They had lived in such a dark world for so long that in the end they hadn't been able to see any light at the end of the tunnel. There had not been a single dim light amid the despair they had felt. It was hard to accept that all of it was finally over. The war had ended after all the weakly burning flames of hope had been extinguished long ago.

Gaara wondered if she wanted to return to her home. It would make sense if she wanted to return to Konoha. Unlike him she had something to return to. Her friends and her family were in Konoha. She had no reason to stay away any longer. The war was over.

War was the reason why they had become deserters. He had been tired of being used as a weapon and she had wanted to escape the cycle of bloodshed and suffering. They had disappeared , leaving everything behind. They had never thought about what they would do if the war ended. Hinata had not been the only one that was perplexed that the war had ended. When had they started being so hopeless?

The sudden shifting of weight on the bed broke him away from his thoughts. Beautiful lavender eyes stared at him groggily. Hinata s' violet hair had been matted by sleep.

" Morning, " said Hinata.

" Morning to you too, " he replied.

Hinata shifted to check the clock on the bedside table. It was just after seven. She sat up and leaned her head against the headboard imitating Gaara. The faint tapping of glass resounded in the room. A little yellow bird kept tapping its beak on the window.

"Your retarded bird just won't give it a rest won't it ? " Gaara said.

"That's not a nice thing to say Gaara ," replied Hinata with a slight smile on a her face .

"It's a bird, " Gaara said.

"An ugly retarded bird. "

"You're so mean. I happen to think it's cute ," said Hinata in defence of the bird. He threw her a look .

"In an artistic kind of way I guess, " said Hinata.

He gave the bird a thoughtful look as it kept tapping its beak on the glass window. He evaluated the bird in careful consideration. He finally reached the conclusion the bird was indeed ugly.

"I have to get up . Mito and her son are going to be here soon, " said Hinata.

"Do you want to return to Konoha ? " Gaara asked. He had never been one to tiptoe around an issue. He preferred getting to the point.

The topic had been avoided for far too long. He had given her enough time .They couldn't carry on as if there wasn't a gigantic elephant in the room. He had to settle his distraughted mind. Hinata kept staring at the bird for a while before she looked at him.

"We left that life behind. I thought we agreed to live our own lives. The war ending doesn't change anything, " said Hinata.

"It doesn't ? " Gaara questioned as he searched her lavender coloured eyes.

"It doesn't, " Hinata replied. Silence ensued.

"I have to get up Mito is going to be here soon, " said Hinata as she threw the white sheets off her and slipped out of the bed. His eyes trailed after her form as she walked out of the bedroom.

* * *

"Oh Hina-chan I'm so sorry for disturbing you so early in the morning. You know how Kaito fears going to the clinic, " said Mito . "The boy hasn't had a check-up in so long and it's been annoying me to no end because. I kept thinking : what if he catches something and I don't even know then I discover when it's too late? I would be a horrible mother. I kept on postponing and I don't even know why I kept postponing. It's been driving me crazy."

"You know he takes after his father. Did I tell you that when we were young Haru used to have a very very big fear of needles ? I remember this one time when we were young and he crashed into me on the street and almost killed me. I later found out that he was running away from old lady Chiyo who was supposed to give him a shot but then he started panicking and bolted right out of the door. I nearly died by the way, " said Mito .

Mito s' hands kept moving around dramatically and her fine porcelain face had adopted a reddish hue around her cheeks due to talking so much. Mito s' silky brown hair cascaded gently down her slender neck. Her large dark eyes were opened widely as she spoke. Her thin pink lips quickly stretched in this and that direction as she spoke. She was dressed in a simple brown summer dress that contrasted with her skin attractively. Mito was a quite easy on the eyes.

"The time he crashed into me was the first time I noticed him and boy was I not was clumsy, ,scrawny and weak looking. He stuttered a lot when I spoke to him too and he lacked any ambition whatsoever. I later discovered that his stutter seemed to become so much worse when I was around because he liked me. In those days I never would imagine that I would fall in love with him, " said Mito, her voice shifting between different pitches the entire time.

"I feel so guilty about yesterday. We got into a big fight and I ended up saying things that I shouldn't have said, " said Mito as her voice lowered.

"The worst part is that it was all my fault, " Mito continued in a depressed tone .

Mito reminded Hinata of a certain talkative blond haired girl from her past. Mito was five years older than Hinata. She was the most talkative person in the village and coincidentally the biggest village gossip. The irony was that she was an accidental gossip. She just didn't know how to keep her mouth shut so it followed that she unintentionally became the biggest spreader of news in the village. It was ironic that although she shared a little too much about other people s' lives no one had it in them to despise her. It was difficult to hate someone like her.

Mito was as nice as they came unless she got into one of her moods that is . When Mito got into one of her moods she became a heavy-duty explosive that could be triggered by the tiniest of things and when she exploded the person who was on the receiving end of her wrath usually received a verbal lashing of cosmic proportions.

Mito was overly dramatic, extremely talkative and had an occasional mean streak. Despite her flaws Mito was a good person. Also her talkative nature made her good company. She and Hinata had connected and had become very close friends. She had snuck her way right into Hinata s' heart. She was one of the people that Hinata almost considered family.

"Don't worry Mito. I'm sure he knows that you didn't mean what you said, " Hinata tried to assure her friend.

"Do you think I'm a bad wife Hina-chan? " asked Mito with glistening eyes.

"No Mito ,you're not. The fact that you're concerned about not being a good wife to Haru means you want to be good to him. It shows you are considerate of your husband s' feelings" , Hinata reasoned.

"I guess ," said Mito.

"Maybe if he wasn't so infuriating I wouldn't fight with him in the first place. Stupid man, " said Mito as her mood suddenly changed.

"Hey ! Otousan isn't stupid, " said Kaito in defence of his father. Mito did not respond.

Hinata merely smiled. Mito should have been giving Haru more credit than she did. The man put up with her. That was no simple feat. Not every man had the patience to do so.

"How much longer aunt Hinata ? " whined Kaito as Hinata ran her glowing hands over his chest.

"Stop your whining Kaito, " said Mito.

"Only a minute longer okay, " Hinata said softly to Kaito with a smile .

The boy developed a smile of his own. Kaito had a gap in his smile from the loose tooth that had fallen off a week ago. The boy had turned six a month ago. He had inherited his mother s' hair but his jaw and his tan complexion had been inherited from his father.

"Okay, " the boy replied with a wide grin.

"You're too soft on the boy Hina-chan, " said Mito.

"Let him be a kid Mito," replied Hinata.

"I can't believe how much you sound like Haru right now, "said Mito. Hinata continued running her glowing hands over Kaito s' body.

"You know what Hina-chan. We should take a vacation to fire country now that the war is over, " said Mito.

Hinata 's glowing hand trembled , the chakra it emitted flickered momentarily and Kaito gave her a quizzical look.

"You know there's a resort a short distance from Konoha that was known for having the best Hot springs before the war started, " said Mito.

"I would have loved to go there for my honeymoon but traveling to Konoha wasn't really an option with the war going on ."

Hinata and Gaara had not told the villagers that they were deserters of the war. They knew that they were shinobi but they didn't know that Hinata was from Konoha. Not only did they not know that Gaara from Suna but they also did not know that he was the Kazekage s' younger brother. Though Hinata doubted that they were even aware of who the Kazekage was. As far as the villagers knew Gaara and Hinata had escaped their village because their clans had been against their love and so they had decided to run away so that they could be with each other. They were just two young lovers who had eloped.

"Wouldn't that be nice Hina-chan ?" , asked Mito.

"That would be nice, " replied Hinata after a moment of silence.

She flashed Mito a smile as the glowing chakra on her hands dissipated. She hoped her smile seemed authentic. Mito s' smile faltered and an indescribable emotion flashed in her eyes. Hinata shifted her eyes back to Kaito.

"You are in perfect health Kaito-kun, " ,said Hinata.

"I thought so. Nothing can take me down ! I'm as tough as nails, just like Otousan !", exclaimed Kaito. He stood up from the wooden stool.

"Are we done aunt Hinata ? " asked Kaito.

"We're through ", replied Hinata.

"Put your shirt on and wait for me outside, " said Mito.

"Bye aunt Hinata !" said Kaito as he ran out of the cottage.

"What have I told you about running inside the house ? " , shouted Mito.

"He's really growing up fast ", said Hinata with a smile.

"I know. I still can't get over the fact that my baby is now turning into a little man", said Mito.

"Listen Hinata. You know I love you right? " , Mito began.

"I know." , Hinata replied in a her usual mellow voice .

"You know that if there's anything that's bothering you can always talk to me right? ", stated Mito.

"I know how to keep a secret when it counts " , Mito continued.

"Thanks Mito but I'm okay. Everything is fine. I promise ", said Hinata.

"It doesn't seem like everything is okay to me girl" , said Mito. Hinata did not reply.

"Is it Gaara ? Did something happen between you two ?" , Mito whispered so that she wouldn't be overhead.

"No, we're fine Mito " , said Hinata .

Mito watched her with a thoughtful look. Hinata had to hide the trembling of her hands by curling them into fists. Mito stood up to leave.

"I'll be ready to listen when you're ready. Say hi to Gaara for me. Tell him I said it's rude not to come out when you have guests in your home ."

And with those words Mito regally walked out of their home. Sometimes it was hard to comprehend that Mito was not royalty with the way she carried herself.

Hinata stared down at her trembling hands in contemplation. She had to put a lot of effort to hold back her tears from flowing. Even still, she couldn't hold back the single tear that slided down her cheek.

* * *

Gaara walked with Hinata down the dusty main village street. He had waited for her at the clinic like he occasionally did so that he could walk home with her. A group of young children flew down the streets in an excited rush. The sun was getting low. The sun was starting to set earlier and earlier each day and the nights were starting to drag on for longer. Winter was approaching and unlike in the land of fire the winters here were almost unbearably cold. The winters here reminded him of Suna.

There were various merchant stalls flanking the sides of the street. There was a dusty path in between the stalls that stretched from the northern village gates to the southern village gates. It was the one area in the village that was always full of life. The merchants were found on that street. Travellers walked down that street. All the streets and intersections in the village were connected to that street.

As Gaara and Hinata walked the voices of the merchants sharply bounced across the air along the main merchants were hoping to make a few more sales before the sun called it a day and shut its curtains, leaving them in the company of the moon and the twinkling stars.

When Gaara had first set foot in this village he noticed that this village was quite smaller than Suna. It was such a small village - the type of village where everyone knew each other by name. He wondered how this village compared to Konoha in terms of size . He had never been to Konoha but he was aware that Konoha was larger than Suna. Despite its smaller geographical size Suna s' population was just as large as Konoha s' population.

The village they currently lived in was by no means a prosperous village but it wasn't a poverty stricken village either. It wasn't a notable village and that made it ideal for keeping a low profile.

Gaara had almost been certain that they would never come across shinobi from their villages in a place that was so far away from Fire Country and Wind Country especially while there was a war going on between the two nations. Mostly only peacetime missions brought a shinobi to these kinds of areas and all missions that were classified as peacetime missions had been promptly put on hold when the war had started escalating. Shinobi had no time to be glorified babysitters or to perform petty errands in distant lands while there was a war to be won.

"Hey Gaara ! Don't you want to buy a couple of extremely fresh cabbages? They're the best in the village I tell ya!", ,shouted a merchant .

The merchant was built like a horse and had a wide grin on his face that was meant to lure customers into buying from him. The merchant s' smile was the bait that he used to lure his prey.

"How about it ? I'll even throw in one for free ", said the heavy merchant as he stroked his unruly beard.

Gaara did not spare the merchant a glance. He loathed cabbage. He kept on walking with his arms folded across his chest. Usually when people crossed their arms over their chest it gave an impression of insecurity but with Gaara the action bespoke of power. Gaara had the appearance of a man of authority and great influence even though he had none. The way he carried himself made people to drop all they were doing and listen when he spoke. Hinata once told him that he could have been a great leader if their lives had played out differently.

People greeted them as they walked down the street. They waved to Hinata with bright smiles on their faces. Hinata did the same in return. She was well loved by the villagers.

Some villagers called out his name in greeting while some men nodded at him before waving at Hinata. He nodded at them in return. Life was ironic. The villagers treated him as if he was one of their own. These people smiled at him. These people spoke to eyes held no hatred or contempt for him and their lips did not utter his name in fear. These people did not wish an unbearably painful death or eternal suffering in the flames of hell upon him. Life was ironic indeed.

A brown haired girl with tanned skin and dark gray eyes walked past them. She flashed him a coy smile and winked at him, ignoring Hinata. He gave her a nod and the girl s' cheeks became a shade darker. He felt Hinata s' chakra spike and shifted his gaze to her. She gave him a unimpressed look and then sharply looked away. He tried to think of what he had done wrong by returning the brown haired girl s' greeting. Hinata constantly reminded him to be polite and yet she now seemed to be bothered by his politeness.

They took a turn along an intersection that led to their home. The area they were entering was made up of a few streets of cubicle-like wooden homes. Some of the homes were large while others were small. Some of the homes, like their own, had a single story while others were double story houses. Green patches of lawn contrasted with the earthy tone of the dusty streets.

Some of the homes were painted in light tones, others were painted in bold colours while others had not been painted but retained the deep earthy colour of wood. This was the residential area of the western district of the village. Roughly a quarter of the village residents lived in this area.

They remained in a comfortable silence as they reached their home at the end of the street.

It had been a long time since Gaara had considered anywhere as home. He had considered the place he lived in with his deceased uncle as his home until his uncle betrayed him and paid the ultimate price. The place he shared with his brother and sister back in Suna was little more than a shelter. A house without love was not a home, it was merely just a house. A home was so much more than just a house. Living with Hinata had reacquainted him with the concept of a true home after a long time and for that he would eternally be greatful to her.

And so the sun finally called it a day and moon and the tiny twinkling stars got their chance to shine without being eclipsed by the ever bright sun.

It was deep into the night when Hinata woke him up with tears pooling in her lavender eyes.

"Gaara ", she whispered. He did not budge.

"Gaara " , she whispered in a louder tone. Still he did not budge.

For most of his life Gaara had not been able to sleep because of the demon trapped within him. Sleeping would often result in his prisoner gaining control over his body and embarking on a bloody rampage.

Sometimes the beast would choose not to go on a bloody rampage but to torture his mind so viciously to the point where would it nearly be torn had always secretly despised people for taking sleep for granted.

From a young age sleeping had never been an option for him but one day the sick voice in his head had gone this day he still did not have the slightest idea about what had silenced the demon. Once the demon grew silent Gaara discovered that he could sleep. After years of not being able to sleep Gaara could finally sleep.

The strange part was that he never dreamt. Never.

"Gaara. "

The unending abyss that Gaara floated in while he slept shattered like glass. His eyes snapped open as he recognised the desperation and pain in Hinata s' voice. His eyes shifted to Hinata. He saw her lying on her side facing his direction with her outstretched arm touching his shoulder. He noticed the flood of emotions in her lavender eyes and the tears streaming down her face.

He took her in his arms and wrapped himself around her . She nestled her head into the crook of his neck , clinging desperately onto his chest. He felt the wetness of her warm tears on his neck. He felt the shuddering of her body and the fast beating of her heart and tightened his grip even more .

" I'm here Hinata " , he whispered.

" I'm here. "

* * *

Gaara woke up to find Hinata not as his side. The sunlight that shone through the window having woken him. The little yellow bird outside performed its usual routine by repeatedly tapping its beak against the glass window.

He rose from the bed and stretched his arms above his head. He scratched an itch that had developed on his scalp as he walked over to the closet . He pulled the pair of black pants that he had worn the day before from the hanger and put them on. As he turned to leave he decided to put on a sweater instead of walking around shirtless as he felt the cold breeze embrace his skin.

He found Hinata frying eggs in the kitchen. She was dressed in his brown hooded sweater and orange sleeping shorts. His brown sweater looked too large on her petite frame. Her long violet hair nearly touched her shoulder blades. Civilian life allowed her to grow out her hair. She looked up from the frying pan as he leaned over the kitchen countertop.

"Hey " , she greeted him with a smile.

"Morning " , he replied impassively.

"The eggs are almost ready. Can you please dish out the rest of the food ", she asked.

Gaara rarely found within himself the strength to refuse her when she gave him the look she was giving him.

"Are you okay ? ", asked Gaara as he reached for the plates from the cupboard.

"I'm fine Gaara ", she assured him.

"Last night I was just ..." , she said.

She turned off the stove and dished the eggs. She went on to open the fridge and retrieve a tall silver bottle filled with orange juice and placed it on the table. As she turned around she found Gaara s' chest blocking her path. She avoided looking into his eyes and stepped to the side. Gaara followed suit, blocking her path.

"You cannot keep on carrying on like this", he said. She pointedly stared at the floor.

He tipped her chin upwards with his thumb and index finger, forcing her to look at him.

"Gaara I told you I'm alright. ", she said, her soft voice becoming firm.

"Stop lying to yourself Hinata" , said Gaara .

Veins appeared all over the sides of Hinata s' upper face and her eyes became a shade lighter as her Byakugan activated. A deadly fire appeared in her eyes. Her livid expression and her strange pale eyes made her look like a mythical goddess of war.

"Why is it so hard for you to believe that there's nothing bothering me ? ", Hinata shouted .

"Because it's a lie " , replied Gaara.

"You're drowning in the past. "

"Not a day goes by where you don't revisit the past. You don't always tell me about it but I can always see it in your eyes. " , continued Gaara.

"So I'm supposed to just forget about everything that happened ? ", Hinata shouted. There were tears starting to appear in her eyes.

"You're not supposed to forget. But you have to come to terms with it." , he replied as his voice thickened. Hinata remained silent.

Hinata pushed past him, went into the bedroom and slammed the door. He was left alone standing next to the dinner table with two untouched plates of breakfast. It was the first time Gaara saw her react so intensely.

For the next few minutes he paced around in the kitchen. The wooden floor was cool against his bare feet and the smell of their unattended breakfast wafted in the air but he paid it no mind. He kept glancing to the narrow corridor that led to their bedroom as he paced. He walked towards the corridor and then stopped. After a while he turned around and walked back to the kitchen and continued pacing.

A few minutes passed before he went back to the corridor and headed to the bedroom. He paused after placing his hand on the cold, circular doorknob. A moment later he turned the doorknob, swung open the door and walked into the room.

He found Hinata lying on the bed on her side and facing the wall. Her back was facing his direction. Gaara stood there in silence for a while .

"When the war ended I was scared ", began Gaara.

"I feared that you would run back to your family back in Konoha and leave me" , said Gaara.

"I was relieved when you told me that the ending of the war didn't change anything and that we could keep on

living like we did the past two years."

" I never wanted to go back ",he said.

"For the past five months I've been fooling myself into believing that you are coping with everything when truthfully you've been coping less ever since the war ended"

Hinata remained silent. She did not turn to look at him.

"You haven't dealt with what happened in the past. I see it now Hinata... I've always seen it. I wasn't brave enough to acknowledge it " , continued Gaara.

"You cannot keep pretending as if everything is okay. You've ran from what happened for far too long. We all have to face our demons at some point. " , he said.

"You have to stop running . You need to go back so- ", he said before Hinata cut him off.

"We can never go back Gaara . " , Hinata cut him off. She was now sitting up and facing his direction.

"How can I face them knowing that I abandoned them. Every single day I wonder maybe if I had not abandoned Konoha then maybe there would be someone who would have not died if I had been there. ", said Hinata.

"I ran away Gaara. I've been living this nice peaceful life while they've been living in hell and losing people they love. What kind of person does that make me? What kind of friend does that make me? ", said Hinata as tears started flowing down her face.

Gaara moved closer and sat down on the corner of the bed.

"What if someone I loved died and I don't even know about it ? I can't face them Gaara. I cannot do it." , said Hinata as the tears kept flowing.

Gaara embraced her and she sobbed into his chest .

"It's time you stopped only way to face your demons is to return to Konoha. I see it clearly now" , said Gaara as he rubbed her back.

"We can't go back " , cried Hinata.

"Hinata ."

A long moment passed as he held her as she cried.

"What if we lose each Gaara? They won't be accepting of our relationship. Konoha still hasn't forgotten what you did. ", whispered Hinata after she had calmed down.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. And they won't take you away from me that easily ." , he replied.

They remained locked in embrace . Gaara had shifted Hinata into his lap and was playing with her hair as she leaned against his chest. After a long while Hinata reluctantly admitted that she needed to return to Konoha.

"Hinata you won't be alone. " , said Gaara.

Hinata looked at him uncertainly. He used to his thumbs to wipe the tears from her eyes. He captured her lips with his own and engaged her lips in a passionate dance that made his core burn with desire. He hoped that she understood what he was trying to say through the kiss. They separated after a while.

Hinata leaned her head against his chest and breathed in his scent. She started tracing his palm with her index finger.

"And here I thought you were the one that needed fixing ", said Hinata softly.

"I like the life we have here. I can't abandon the clinc - they need me", Hinata said after a while.

"Think of it as nothing more than a visit ", he replied.

"Alright ? , he asked her.

"Alright." , she replied after a while.

It was on that Autumn morning that Gaara vowed to himself to help Hinata to overcome her inner turmoil. Even if it meant setting foot on lands he had promised himself never again to return to he would do it. Consequences be damned , for Hinata s' sake , he would do it.

The golden leaves that were falling off the tree in their back yard caught his eye through the glass window .Winter was near.

They were in no rush to return. It would be an unnecessary pain to travel during Winter. They would wait for Winter to pass, only then would they return to everything they had left behind.

* * *

A.N

Thank you so much for reading . Please review. I would really appreciate your views. I apologise for any spelling/gramatical errors I might have made.

Hopefully I'll update soon.

{ The Immortal Sage}


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"Lift your chin and set your shoulders,

Plant your feet and take a brace.

When it's vain to try to dodge it,

Do the best that you can do;

You may fail, but you may conquer,

Black may be the clouds about you

And your future may seem grim,

But don't let your nerve desert you;

Keep yourself in fighting trim.

If the worst is bound to happen,

Spite of all that you can do,

Running from it will not save you,"

\- Edgar Guest

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Your move " , said Gaara as he placed a wooden piece on the shogi board.

Haru mulled over the positions of the pieces on the board. His gaze slowly shifted from piece to piece. Between his eyebrows was a crease that dipped towards his long nose. His jaw repeatedly clenched and unclenched. A peculiar expression spread across his face. Gaara knew what would soon follow. He had long ago realised the futility of attempting to best Haru in a game of Shogi whenever Haru s' face morphed into that expression.

A sole ant crawling on the green lawn caught his attention. The ant laboured in carrying a crumb of some sort of starch. Ants where now milling about lately. The seasons were changing. Winter was at its end.

Haru tipped his head back and sipped from a ceramic cup that was filled with what he claimed to be the most premium sake in the nation - well, as premium as a man who had a person like Mito for a wife could get away with splurging on. His face twisted as if he was swallowing a generous serving of freshly squeezed lemon juice. His Adam s' apple bopped up and down as he swallowed the strong drink. Throughout the action, his eyes remained on the board.

Gaara failed to comprehend why people would drink sake. He had attempted to drink it once and to this day he doubted he would ever repeat that mistake. The smell alone had contributed immensely to his reservations concerning sake and had almost driven him to vow to never ingest the vile beverage. Despite the smell, in the end it was the taste that had proven to be the final nail in the coffin. He remembered how the warm liquid had excruciatingly slid over his tongue and down the tunnel of his throat - leaving a horrible aftertaste and his throat furiously protesting. He would be damned before he drank sake ever again. Despite believing that he had made significant progress towards understanding people in the few years since he had gained his sanity, he still failed to understand their reasoning sometimes.

Gaara s' ears picked up on the high shrill of Mito s' voice as she scolded Kaito in the house. The air faithfully carried her voice all the way from the kitchen to where they were seated beneath the shade of a dying tree in the back yard. Her voice was filled with annoyance and a touch of anger. Kaito s' defensive protests soon followed.

Kaito s' dog barked without ceasing from where it was leashed - its aggression being directed at him. For some reason the small mutt always displayed extremely volatile behaviour towards him. The barking only stopped when his gaze rested on its orange-brown form. The dog let out a primitive growl and bared its fangs at him. He blinked and shifted his gaze back to Haru when he once again lost interest in the aggressive mutt.

Mito s' voice continued flying through the air. Kaito was now silent. Haru let out a deep sigh as Mito continued scolding Kaito. Haru tipped his neck upwards and and scratched the ragged scar on his neck. Gaara s' eyes lingered on the scar for a while. He sometimes wondered how a civilian such as Haru had acquired such a scar. It resembled a scar that one would receive in combat from a projectile that was meant to give you a helping hand in departing from the land of the living .

Haru was an unremarkable man if you were to judge from looks alone. He had the kind of face that was easily forgettable. His stature was neither large nor slight - his height average. His hairstyle was one that was favoured by many men in this village - which meant that it couldn't be distinguished in a crowd. His face was constantly cleanly shaved and his skin tone told tales of a man who had received a generous dosage of sunlight throughout his life.

Haru s' eyes remained fixated on the shogi board as he took another gulp of sake.

"I would appreciate it if you reminded Akinari-san to cut our lawn if the grass starts getting too big ", said Gaara.

His words had been preceded by a long bout of nothing but silence , the sound of Haru s' swallowing and a few strings of single-worded exchanges regarding the game they were playing.

"I wouldn't stress too much about the lawn getting too high if I were you. Those neighbours of yours wouldn't let that happen in fear of breeding a snake habitat so near to their doorsteps ." Haru replied with humour.

"The question is though ... Are you ever coming back to this backwater village of ours ?", said Haru.

"Why would we not we come back ? This village feels more like home to me than my actual village." , said Gaara.

Gaara would have never imagined he would make a friend in this village. At some point in his life he had stopped seeing friendships and relationships with other people as necessary for feeling complete as a human being - he had found new methods to make himself feel complete. He had found other means to make himself feel alive. He was not proud of the things he had done in those days. Despite once believing that Hinata was the only person who could be of any value in his life, Haru had changed his perspective. A few people along the years , Haru in particular and to a lesser extent Mito, had made him realise that although going through life without any friends was possible , having friends made life a little more worthwhile.

Hinata and him had fed the village a fabricated story about their past.To the village, they were just two lovers who had relocated to this village because of the conflict revolving around their families. They had moved away from their shinobi village because of the bad blood that ran deep between their families. It had been impossible for them to be together in their village. They had left their village in persuit of getting a chance to love each other. Their story was the reason old ladies smiled at him. Despite that, it was effective nonetheless.

They had given the villagers the impression that they had led ordinary lives as shinobi of a minor shinobi village in a country not too far away. The villagers were not aware that a below-average kunoichi could not possibly perform the healing techniques Hinata could do. They spoke of nothing that would link them to the war. Something unsettled him though - Haru had never asked him about his past.

Mito had asked Hinata about her childhood innumerable times. It was normal for civilians to be curious about the lives of shinobi- especially since they were nearly nonexistent in this region. Moreover it was normal for people to be curious about the lives that foreigners had led.

Haru never questioned him about the life he had lived before coming here. Never. Not once. It was as though Haru knew he had a dark past he was not willing to discuss. That would mean he was not convinced by their farce. That would mean he saw right through their lie. Shinobi were trained to deceive. Civilians were simply not supposed to be even slightly capable of seeing their deceit. How had Haru had seen through them so easily?

"I don't know. Maybe you won't feel the need to stay away from your home because the one thing that you ran away from might no longer be an issue" , said Haru.

Gaara s' eye twitched. Just like that Haru had aroused the feeling he felt now and then when speaking to him. It was not what he said that bothered him -It was in the way he said it. It felt as if Haru knew that Hinata and him were not only returning home to face

disapproving parents about their love lives. No, Haru realised the true weight of returning home. Gaara could see it in his eyes.

Gaara did not respond. He merely stared at his friend. A small smirk slipped onto Haru s' face. Gaara glanced at the scar on Haru s' neck. His eyes lingered there for a while. He looked back up to his brown eyes. He stared into eyes that saw past the deceit. The eyes of a man who had his own share of secrets.

The look in Haru s' eyes indicated he was aware that Gaara knew that he knew. Haru wanted him to know that he knew. Soon after this man had befriended him, he had been sure that there was more to this man than what met the eye. Appearances were deceiving weren't they ?

It would be foolish to think he was the only one who had skeletons hidden in his closet wouldn't it ? Despite sometimes being an enigma, the man had been good to him and Hinata. He would not stick his nose in places it did not belong. Just like the man had done with them, he would look the other way. Some areas were better left unexplored.

"The guys are really gonna feel your absence you know , with all the work you do down at the - "

Gaara s' focus drifted from Haru s' words. Thinking of their impending journey made him realise he would be returning home a different man. Although Haru did not know it , he had contributed in shaping him into the man he was today.

No-one in Suna had taught him about being a man. Age alone did not make a man. The lessons you learnt and the values and beliefs instilled into you made you a man. Manhood is a mindset. Observing the way Haru dealt with his family and fellow villagers had taught him a few things about what a man was supposed to do. The discussions he had been part of with the other village men had a powerful impact on him. He had learned a thing or two from the vast and often times conflicting views of the simple villagers. He was grateful to this village. It had become the home he had never had.

"Old man Sashi is really taking Hinata 's leave very hard. The poor man still believes he has a chance of stealing Hinata away from you. ", Gaara caught Haru saying after he had abandoned his thoughts.

"Boys ! The food is ready !" , Mito shouted from the kitchen door.

" We'll be right there ! " , answered Haru.

Haru threw his head back and gulped down the last remaining drops of sake from the porcelain cup. He grabbed the flask of sake from underneath the table and stood up. He turned around, took a step towards the house and stopped.

"For your sake, I hope you do not forget why you walked away in the first place " , Haru said with his back turned to him.

Gaara s' gaze roamed to the shogi board. Haru had won once again. Losing to him did not bother him much - he rarely beat Haru anyway. Kaito s' dog continuned its tireless barking. Hinata s' mellow laughter sounded from the kitchen. Kaito laughed along with her. Mixed aromas of rice, shrimp tempura, miso soup and other dishes waffled in the air. Haru remained frozen as a statue with his back facing him.

"Never ", Gaara responded. His fists were clenched and his eyes had moistened. There was no way that would happen. He would never forget.

"Then you just might be alright ", Haru muttered under his breath as he walked

towards the house with the flask of sake in hand.

" You just might be alright."

Gaara watched him walk away. He remained there staring at his hands for some time. Hinata s' head popped out of the kitchen. She flashed him a smile and beckoned him to come. He stood up and followed Haru into the house.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The sun had long set when Gaara and Hinata entered their home. They had spent the whole day at Mito and Haru s' home. They had talked and laughed. They had shared what would most likely their last meal together for a while.They planned to return after fixing whatever needed to be fixed back home. Knowing that the path of life was uncertain, Gaara and Hinata realised that it could possibly be the last meal they shared with them.

Mito had sworn to hunt them down if they disappeared on them. Haru had wished them well with their travels. Throughout the past few days whenever they came across villagers they would mention something in relation to their trip home. They had assured the villagers that it would only be a short trip and that they would return. A large part of the community was saddened by the fact that Hinata would not be around for a while. She was loved by her patients.

Three and a half months had passed since they had made the difficult decision of going home. Tomorrow they would be beginning their journey. If all went according to plan and they were not sidetracked they would be crossing into the land of Wind in a week and a half.

Hinata walked past the kitchen door and plopped down on the earth-coloured sofa in the lounge. Gaara remained behind locking the door. Her lavender eyes followed him as he leaned against the entrance of the lounge. She flashed him a smile. He barely responded with an awkward smile. He had not gotten the hang of smiling without reason to. She looked away from his piercing green eyes.

"When we first got here I never would have imagined that I would become so attached to this village and its people.", said Hinata.

" Me too.", Gaara responded with a smile on his face.

Seeing him smile made her insides burn with hope. Despite the pain , the suffocating loneliness and the madness here he was with a gentle smile across his face. Gaara the infamous Sand Demon of Suna who had been known for having a tendency of making the sky rain with the blood of his enemies was here with her, smiling at her. Maybe there was hope for their world after all.

" We don't have to go through with this ", she whispered.

" Hinata we've talked about this many times already" , Gaara said.

"We could just carry on with our lives and let the past remain in the past " , she said.

Gaara remained silent. Even now she still was afraid of going back. How could he make her see that she needed to do this ?

"You won't be alone " , he said. He had said those very same words to her as she had lied her head against his chest and shed silver tears that dark morning last autumn.

"I sound ridiculous , don't I ? " , Hinata whispered. They were quiet for some time.

"There's still something we have to do" , said Gaara. Hinata knew what he was referring to.

"Iguess it's now or never I guess", she said. She sounded tired.

He nodded and then slowly walked towards the bedroom. She stood up and followed after him. As she entered the room she found him bent over and searching for something beneath the bed. He found what he was looking for and straightened from his bent position. In his hand was a thin scroll.

He set the unmarked scroll on the floor and looked at her. She watched him closely with bated breath. Gaara crossed his fingers for the first seal - just a drop of chakra would be needed to unseal the scroll.

Hinata s' heart quickened. She felt blood rushing to her ears. Her lavender eyes became moist. Gaara s' eyes remained on her. She realised that he too understood what unsealing the scroll meant. He too felt what she felt.

Unsealing the scroll would bring them one step closer to crossing the bridge that would lead them back to their pasts. Unsealing the scroll would bring them just a tiny bit closer to forsaking the peaceful lives they had made for themselves in this tiny village. It meant risking to lose each other and every good thing they had built together in the last few years. They were risking to climb into a hole without the guarantee that they could ever climb out.

She could not allow Gaara to unseal that scroll. She wouldn't let him. She had to stop him no matter what. He had to be stopped.

"Wait " , she said urgently.

Gaara glanced at his hands. Hinata s' pale delicate fingers were forcing his hands apart. He looked into her eyes.

Just by looking into his eyes she felt her courage increase. She felt as if she was drawing some of his strength for her own. Lately it felt as if Gaara was always a pillar to lean on when she felt as if she couldn't push on. When had he become so strong ? When had he acquired the ability to face life head-on unflinchingly and unbending in his resolve? If only he had been this strong growing up then he would have never been known as the bloodthirsty Sand Demon of Suna.

Feeling courage flowing in her veins, Hinata let go of his warm hands- hands that were soft from having had been rarely been used in combat. She took a step back and nodded. Gaara restarted the sequence of handsigns. A soft pop rang in the room. Numerous Items materialised before them. The room was as silent as a corpse.

Hinata s' lavender eyes were transfixed on a soiled hitai-ate. The plate of the hitai-ate had numerous scratches on it. The cloth of the hitai-ate was covered in dust - one corner of the long rectangular cloth of the hitai-ate was coloured by blood that had long dyed the cloth. The insignia of Konohagakure no Sato stood proudly on the metal plate.

Along with her hitai-ate was a large gourd. The gourd was made of solidified sand and resembled a Calabash. The gourd was decorated by black markings and patterns. It was Gaara s' sand gourd. The gourd made her recall memories she would rather forget.

Next to the gourd lay a folded knee-length marron jacket. The marroon jacket , the gourd and his maroon hair had been the identifiers that his enemies had used to distinguish him during the war. Although, being on the lookout for a physical profile that matched his was unnecessary - If you had the unfortunate luck of coming across him on the battlefield you would know it was him.

Her eyes shifted to the olive flak jacket besides Gaara s' jacket. It was the standard issue jounin flack jacket of Konoha. The were two puncture holes slightly below the left shoulder - numerous dried splotches and splashes of blood decorated the jacket. She felt bile rise in her throat as her eyes lingered on the blood - a shiver ran up her spine. Gaara s' eyes shifted to where she was looking. His eyes landed on the holes on the jacket. He quickly looked away. He felt his stomach turn uncomfortably and felt his jaw tighten involuntarily.

Next to the flak-jacket was a folded stack. It was a matching navy set of pants and a jacket , the material was thick and rough to the touch - it was the standard issue shinobi uniform of Konoha. Before the war , wearing the uniform had been optional but when out on the field during the war wearing the uniform had been compulsory. Even hard-headed nonconformists had been forced to conform by the higher-ups. She had attempted to burn her uniform soon after deserting. She had failed and vomited instead. Burning the uniform felt like betraying everything she had sworn to serve and protect.

Two years, nine months and ten days - that's how much time had passed since she had laid eyes on the contents of this scroll. They had sealed away these items only five days after deserting.

Her hand trembled as she picked up the hitai-ate. The cold metal burned her fingers. She stared at the symbol of the leaf. After a while she looked up into Gaara s' eyes.

Pain was hidden in his eyes. A line had been crossed -one they might not be able to cross back. Just like that, they had thrown themselves back into a world they had so desperately wanted to escape. Something compelled her to break eye-contact with him.

His hand slipped into her own. He wrapped his other hand over their intertwined hands. He brought their hands to his beating heart. She was forced to look into his eyes. She felt his strong heartbeat. She forced a smile. She understood what he meant. She would never forget his words.

"As long as my heart beats , I'll never abandon you ", Gaara had said to her in a moment of uncertainty.

Gaara tightly embraced her. While he held her she felt as if maybe, just maybe , nothing could get to her. She felt some of the stiffness in her muscles lessen as he hugged her. His strong heartbeat kept reminding her of his promise. She wondered if he would be able to keep his promise - he was just human after all and humans had a tendency of failing to keep promises.

She looked up and smiled at him. She didn't to fake it this time. His eyes shifted to her lips. He drew her into a kiss and she submitted. She felt a fire ignite in her belly. The kiss deepened. Their want increased. He urged her to the bed and laid her onto the white bedding. The fire in her core grew to a fever pitch. Her heart and her body responded to him as if it was their first time. His touch left her skin burning and her breath short.

At that moment she was not a missing heiress that was haunted by her past. At that moment he was not a man whose past was smudged with blood. No, at the moment she was just a woman and he was just a man showing their love for one another. Just a man and woman who desired to be one.

Beyond the foot of the bed, besides the unraveled white storage scroll, on the cool wooden floor, lay the recently unsealed contents of the storage scroll. They lay forgotten in their passion.

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Hinata glanced back at the smiling faces of the villagers as they walked away. The handful of villagers had woken up early to give Gaara and Hinata a warm send-off. They stood at the freshly painted village gates. Among the people sending them off was Mito, Haru and their son Kaito. Old lady Chiyo and Hinata s' three apprentices were there - Hinata had taken the girls under her wing when she started working at the clinic and taught them almost everything she knew about healing. The girls adored her to no end.

The village leader was there alongside his prideful wife. A few other people had also come to say their goodbyes. And of course , Old man Sashi. He had come to bade farewell to his lovely Hinata. Old lady Chiyo had shook her head at his passionate proclamations of his unrequited love.

Some of these people had occupied a space in her heart - a space reserved for people she had grown attached to. A person couldn't hope to lower their guard against such warm people and not get attached.

They walked at a slow pace. The faces of the smiling villagers faded from sight as they continued walking down the dusty trail. They had walked for fifteen minutes when they stopped.

The henge that hid Gaara s' true appearance disintegrated. He was dressed in black pants and a gray shirt. His old marroon coat hung proudly on his form. He had grown slightly in the time he had not worn it but the knee-length coat still fitted adequately. His sand-coloured gourd was tied to his strong back. The presence of the gourd and the marroon coat made her feel a twinge of discomfort. It painfully reminded her of the old Gaara - a bloodthirsty and savage Gaara.

" Ready ? " , Gaara asked.

"I'm ready ", Hinata replied. Her voice was resolute but her resolve remained shaky no matter how hard she tried.

Gaara nodded. They broke into a sprint. They soared through the ground at breakneck speeds. The bushes and trees were only blurs in their eyes. They pushed their bodies to the limit. They felt every muscle screaming as they pushed on. There was nothing to feel but the stubborn wind that resisted against them.

She did not know why they were traveling at such a brutal pace. She suspected that Gaara did not know either. She just felt compelled to. Something that had been dormant for so long inside her awakened as she pushed her body to the limit.

They only stopped once every few hours for a break. They did not talk as they traveled. They only ran. Maybe it was the nervousness of facing what was to come that made them keep up a pace that was so intense. They ran in a way they had not run in years. Their only goal was traveling eastwards. Most of their journey would be on land. A part of it on sea. There was a long journey ahead of them.

As time went on the burning intensity of the sun began to weaken. They had spent most of the day running. She had long felt the exhaustion creep in. Soon the sun was setting.

There was a small civilian village close by. They would be spending the night there. They did not plan on camping out in the forrest for the night. She felt a twinge of guilt at how civilian life had made her soft. She been the one to insist that they rest in the village. Gaara had not opposed - he barely argued with her over such things. He always let her be the one who decided over such small matters.

The forrest trees remained indistinguishable blurs. Her feet were killing her. They exited the forrest. They were now in an barren plain. The village was a blip in the distance. Gaara put on a henge to hide his appearance.

They slowed down as they neared the gates of the village. The village was similar to the one they had been living in for almost three years. It was the type of village where everyone knew each other by name.The name of the village had slipped both their minds.

She couldn't wait to take a nice relaxing bath. Her legs were tired and she didn't smell very pleasantly. Shewas occupied with searching through her beige traveling pack when Gaara s' consistent strides drew to a sudden halt.

She stopped walking and looked up at him.

"What is it ? " , she said. Hedid not reply. His eyes remained fixated on the village entrance in the distance.

She slowly shifted her eyes to the direction he was looking at. She felt all traces of exhaustion leave her. Veins were suddenly etched on the fine, pale skin around her eyes. Her eyes took on a different shade. She had activated her byakugan so that she could see better over the distance.

In the distance, at the village gates, was a man. The orange rays of the setting sun glowed on the man. The man was shirtless. He hung from a tall wooden beam. His head hung limply to the side. He was held in place by two katanas that were deeply embedded into his bloodied torso. A large portion of the rectangular wooden beam he was hanging from had been drenched by his crimson blood.

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A.N

Thank you for reading. I'll try to update soon. Please , please , please , pleeease leave a review. I would really appreciate if you reviewed my story. Reviews motivate me to keep on going

{The Immortal Sage}

I


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"Those who do not understand true pain can never understand true peace."

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The man rose from the ground. Every single movement brought him intense agony. Hinata and Gaara did not stop him. His efforts were futile. He had been defeated. He retrieved a storage scroll from the pouch on his lower back. He unsealed the contents of the scroll. Shock seized Hinata s' heart. Sitting at the man s' feet were explosives.

"All those that oppose us have to be destroyed. It seems like we are going to need to use something with a bit more firepower to destroy you Gaara of the Desert," said the man.

"I will not allow you to stand in the way of peace."

Hinata had seen this type of chakra explosives in textbooks.They were rumoured to have been developed by the Explosion Corps of Iwagakure.It wassaid that they were capable of turning a mountain into dust. There were no recorded instances where the explosives had been used. They were almost considered to be a myth among shinobi.How on earth had he gotten his hands on them ?

"All those that oppose us have to be destroyed, " said the man.

The death that would follow if those explosives detonated would be catastrophic. They would most likely be caught in the blast alongside the villagers.

Hinata was not ready to die. She had not seen how her family was fairing. She had not asked them to forgive her for being a coward by running away from the war. She had not achieved all her ambitions. She still wanted to wake up in Gaara s' arms another day. She wanted to have children. She wanted to see tomorrow.

"All those that oppose us have to be destroyed."

Even if they managed to escape the blast they would not be able to save the villagers. She would not be able to bear the guilt of letting so many people die.

Many innocents would die. The villagers had nothing to do with the war that had plagued their villages.Each one of the villagers had a name. They loved, they hated and they cried. Each one of them had dreams,hopes and fears. If this man succeeded all of that would be over.

"All those that oppose us have to be destroyed," the man repeated once more.

Hinata felt a dark anger building within her. She could feel the contamination and corruption that such anger could bring to a person s' soul. She could count the number of times she had felt such anger in her life. The anger was so intense it made it hard to breathe. What right did this man have ? What right did a person who did not have the power to provide life have to rob people of life ?

"If you do this none of us will survive. How will you fulfill your purpose if you are dead," said Gaara.

"All those that oppose us have to be destroyed !" shouted the man. Tears were now flowing down the man s' cheeks.

"You have lost your mind, " said Gaara.

"No, I have never seen things with greater clarity. I have do what I must to destroy all those that oppose us," said the man.

"It's the only way to achieve our goal."

He brought his fingers together and formed the snake seal in order to activate the explosives.

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Earlier that day...

From what Hinata could tell by observing the corpse the man had been dead for about a while. The corpse was attracting flies and other insects.

Less than a day had passed since they had left their home and here they were looking at a corpse that was impaled to the gate posts. The life they had left behind was like a crocodile that was hiding in the river waiting for the slightest opportunity to capture its unsuspecting prey in its jaws.

They sight before them did not not upset them. Shinobi, especially ones that had seen war, were not easily shaken. Instead, they were astonished by the sight. Why was there a corpse embedded to the gate post of a civilian village ?

"We have to find out what's going ," said Hinata.

"There's another village that's only an hour away from here. We could spend the night there instead," said Gaara.

"Gaara we can't just walk away and pretend that there isn't a corpse hanging from the gate posts. Something isn't right, " said Hinata.

"It doesn't concern us Hinata," said Gaara.

"How can you say that ? If the villagers are in danger then we have to do something. It's the right thing do, " Hinata said.

"I'm going to find out what is going on. You can stay behind hiding in the trees if you like. You can even go on ahead with the journey. I'll catch up," declared Hinata.

She spun around and walked away. Her strides were determined and purposeful. Gaara sighed. He sometimes struggled to see the timidity that Hinata claimed to have struggled with in her childhood. He followed her. He fell into step besides her. She looked up at him. His eyes refused to look at her.

"You know I won't let you walk in there alone, " muttered Gaara.

By the time they reached the village gates the sky was a red blush. The gate structure was made of old wood that was painted green. The open gates were about ten metres wide and the village perimeter was surrounded by a rusting fence.

The corpse was hanging on the right hand side of the gate. The pale corpse reeked with the nauseating stench of decomposition. They spared the corpse a glance and proceeded into the village.

As they walked deeper into the village Gaara noticed that there were far less people that were roaming the streets compared to the last time he had been here. He had come to this village last year on the day of Hinata s' birthday. He had been told that there was an old teashop owner who made the best cinnamon rolls among the surrounding villages. Hinata had had often spoke about how she missed the cinnamon rolls she used to eat back in Konoha. The cinnamons rolls he had travelled all the way for were his gift to her.

Nothing felt normal. Gaara made eye contact with the few villagers they come across on the dusty street. Many of their eyes were screaming with exhaustion and their shoulders were drooping. The exhaustion seemed more than just physical exhaustion. There wasn't a single child running down the street. Themerchants were not boisterous and lively. They stood quietly next to their stalls with no entrapping smiles on their faces. They had no flattering words for those passing by.

Hinata caught Gaara s' eyes. They needed to find someone who could give them answers about the bleak state of the villagers and the corpse at the gates. Gaara nodded. They continued leisurely walking down the street. The streets reminded Gaara of the silence that used to keep him company in the night during his days of loneliness and sleeplessness.

They reached an intersection. There was a teashop right at the corner of the street. Gaara gestured to the shop. The words 'Arata s' Teashop' were painted in bold on the wooden store front. Gaara held the door open for Hinata as they entered the teashop.

The teashop was illuminated by red, yellow and orange paper lanterns that gave the room a warm glow. Origami flowers and dragons hung in the air. The air was filled with the aroma of sweet and spicy tea. The teashop had a traditional and cozy feel to it. There were tables spread across the room and there were a few bar stools along the counter.

There was young woman standing behind the counter. She looked up as they entered. She seemed to be close to their age. She pulled a welcoming smile on her face. Dimples appeared on her cheeks as she smiled. She had long brown hair and thick eyelashes. They sat on the bar stools by the counter.

"Hello my name is Misaki. What can I get you? " the woman said to them. Her voice was pleasant to the ears. It was good for business.

"Are the old man s' cinnamon rolls still as good as they used to be ? " said Gaara. The woman s' smile gained a touch of sincerity.

"So you've met Grandfather. He's retired now but I promise I can make them just as well he does," said Misaki.

This Misaki amused Gaara. She was serving smiles as if the village streets did not feel like a cemetery and as if there wasn't a rotting corpse hanging at the gate posts. What a talented actress.

"Is this where you got those cinnamon rolls you bought me for my birthday ?" said Hinata. Gaara nodded.

"Cinnamon rolls it is then. And Sencha tea for me and Gyokuro tea for him please," said Hinata with a smile on her face.

Misaki nodded and retreated to the kitchen. Hinata glanced around. There were only seven other people in the shop. None of them seemed to be in high spirits. They were all sipping their tea silently with their eyes downcast.

Hinata turned to Gaara and shot him a look. She wanted him to know that she was still upset by what he had said earlier. Gaara did not react.

Misaki returned with a tray. She took two saucers and two finely decorated cups and placed them before them. She took a ceramic teapot, filled Gaara s' cup and set it down. She took another teapot and did the same to Hinata s' cup. A plate of cinnamon buns was placed before them.

The brown haired woman was not lying. The cinnamon buns were just as delicious as Hinata remembered. They drank their tea and ate their tea in silence. Gaara only took a bite and left the rest for Hinata.

It was becoming darker outside. One by one the down trodden customers paid their bills and left. Only Misaki and the two of the remained. Misakistepped out from the kitchen with a cloth and started wiping down the tables. It was almost time to close shop.

"Why is there a corpse hanging at the gates and why are the villagers behaving this way ?" Hinata said while looking at Misaki.

Misaki froze while wiping a table. She turned and ran her eyes up and down Hinata and Gaara. Her eyes were guarded.

"You shouldn't ask too many questions," the brown haired woman said.

Gaara remained facing the counter and sipping his tea as if nothing was happening. Hinata s' lavender eyes narrowed.

"Sometimes all you have to do is to tell the right people in order for things to be fixed," said Hinata.

"Fix things ? What can you possibly do to make things better ? "said Misaki.

"You just have to tell us what is going on, " said Hinata.

"There is nothing you can do to help us. No one can stop those monsters, " Misaki said. Her voice cracked as she spoke. Gaaraspun around and faced her.

"I'm very familiar with monsters. I do not fear them ," said Gaara.

Something in the maroon haired man s' eyes inexplicably made her feel as if a bucket of ice was being poured down her back on a cold winter morning. Voices and the shuffling of feet sounded from the street. Misaki tensed. Those monsters s' eyes and ears were everywhere. Speaking of them in this manner was dangerous.

"Please leave. It's time for me to close the shop."

"We only want to help, " said Hinata.

"We hope you pass by Arata s' Teashop soon and we hope you have a great evening ," said Misak with a smile on her face. Her smile was as truthful as a lie.

Gaara tossed Hinata a look and stood up. He dug into his coat and retrieved some money and placed it onto the counter. Hinata stood and grabbed her bag.

"Thanks for the tea, " said Hinata.

Misaki watched the maroon haired man who had a powerful presence and the graceful and exceptionally well groomed indigo haired woman walk out of the teashop. They disappeared into the street. Misaki continued wiping the tables. These people were insane for having the idea that they could save her village.

Outside the shop, Hinata and Gaara stood hidden in the shadows. They had agreed to not give up on the brown haired woman. They stood waiting for her to leave the shop. They would follow her to where she went. She would be the one that would give them the answers they were after.

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Misaki walked down the curving street. Her home came into view. The night was sinister as ever. Her thoughts kept drifting back to the two travellers that had stopped by the teashop. She still could not fathom what gave them the certainty that they had the power to change anything. Their confidence was potent that it made her nearly believe them even though she had no reason to.

She reached her home. She stepped onto the porch and searched through her bag for the key and couldn't find it. That was the thing she hated most about living alone. Having to search for her keys when she got to the door. It was a problem she had never faced while living with her grandparents. Although, it was a small price to pay for her independence.

She finally found the key in her grey tote bag. She plunged the key into the keyhole at just the right angle and turned it. She stepped into the house and pushed the door closed.

It took a few seconds for her mind to realise that the door was refusing to be shut. The seemed to be a force that was stopping the movement of the door. She peeked outside. Her breastbone was the only thing that restrained her heart from jumping out of her chest. Standing at her door were the two travellers from the teashop.The maroon haired man s' outstretched arm was preventing her from shutting the door.

"Please let us in. We only want to know what's going on," said Hinata. Her pale eyes were strange to Misaki.

Misaki felt that saying no would not turn them away. They had followed her all the way from the teashop. These two were too persistent about getting answers. What had she done to deserve this ?

"What is wrong with you people ? " said Misaki. She swung open the door to let them in.

Gaara and Hinata stepped into the pretty brown haired woman s' home. Her home was was only large enough for two people to live in comfortably. The fridge buzzed in the background. The furniture seemed new. Just like it's tenant the home was clean, neat and smelled like flowers. Misakigestured for them to take a seat at the couch. Hinata sat down. Gaara chose to lean against the wall.

"I didn't even get your names and here you are forcing your way into my home, " said Misaki.

"I'm Hinata and that's Gaara, " said Hinata.

"Hinata... beautiful name ," said Misaki.

Misaki s' gaze landed on Gaara. The man was oozing authority and power. Her eyes lingered on the red tattoo on his forehead. Her gaze shifted down to his piercing green eyes. She felt compelled to look away. Sheredirected her attention to the girl with the strange eyes.

"Tell me exactly why you think you can do anything for us, " said Misaki.

"We're shinobi," said Hinata.

"Oh so you're one of them, " Misaki said bitterly. Her face had scrunched in disgust.

"So these monsters you speak of are shinobi ? " said Hinata. Misaki nodded.

"Who do you work for ? " said Misaki.

"No one," replied Gaara.

"How did these shinobi you speak of drive the village to such a state ?" said Gaara.

"Where do I even start ? " said Misaki.

"At the beginning," answered Hinata.

Misaki sat down.

"They arrived here a little less than a month ago. Three men and a woman. They just walked into the village as if they owned the place and asked for the village leader. When they met with the village leader they demanded that he call a meeting in the village. The village leader was too afraid to refuse. Most of the village assembled and they addressed us," said Misaki.

"They didn't tell us their names or where they're from. They call themselves The Light. They told us that the village would be under their rule moving forward. As you probably can guess, no-one took this announcement kindly. Some of the village men started physically resisting," continued Misaki.

Dark emotions rushed through Misaki s' eyes as she revisited her memories. Hinata s' eyes were filled with compassion as she looked at Misaki. Gaara appeared indifferent.

"Then what happened ? " Hinata asked after Misaki had been silent for a while.

"Then the shinobi beat them. They beat them till they could barely walk or even talk. They beat them so hard and for so long. It became painful to keep looking. They kept on beating them and beating them until some of them seemed to be dead. I had never seen anything so horrible," said Misaki.

"After that no one had the balls to resist. The beating that those men went through was an effective demonstration of what would happen to us if we refused to comply. Damn those self serving hypocrites,".

The gloomy behaviour of the villagers started to make sense. Their spirits had been crushed because their freedom had been taken away from them.

"Why do you say they are hypocrites ? " questioned Hinata.

"I haven't gotten to the most interesting part. They believe that what they are doing is for the good of humanity," said Misaki.

"Now that's interesting," muttered Gaara.

"They say that they will be the ones that will shed light onto a dark world. They will be the light that will usher the world into peace," said Misaki. Gaara and Hinata shared a glance.

"They are obsessed over peace. They claim that achieving peace is the sole purpose of their cause. I just wonder what us suffering has to do with achieving peace in the world, " said Misaki.

"What happened to the dead man at the gates ?" said Gaara.

Misaki balled her hands into fists to hide their trembling. The pain in her eyes was as obvious as a bloody handprint on white sheets. Her tears begged for release. A few of them found freedom. She quickly wiped the them away but it was futile - they just kept on flowing.

"His name was Himawari. He and I were friends ," said Misaki.

"He died for standing up to those monsters. One of the monsters forced himself onto his sister and Himawari lost his mind when he discovered ," said Misaki.

"One of them raped his sister ?" said Hinata. Her eyes were fierce.

"One of the shinobi had grown fond of Himawari s' sister. He tried approaching her but she immediately turned him down. He went crazy over how she was so ungrateful about what they were doing for her village and the world. So he punished her for ungratefulness by raping her, " said Misaki.

"And so this Himawari confronted them when he discovered ? " said Gaara.

"He confronted them and said a lot of things he wouldn't have said if he was in the right state of mind. He called them oppressors and said that they knew nothing about peace. Then he started ridiculing the notion of peace. He told them that there was never going to be peace. He said peace was a foolish man s' dream. "

Misaki became lost in thought. She remained silent for a long while.

"Then those shinobi went crazy because of Himawari s' words. And so those bastards killed him. Their leader said that all those who opposed peace had to be destroyed. They wanted Himawari to serve as some cruel warning so they made the village watch his execution. They stabbed him in the torso. I watched him as he slowly bled out. The most painful thing was that I could see it in his eyes how he desperately wanted to live, " said Misaki. Her voice was unsteady as she spoke.

"They won't even let his family bury him. His body serves as constant reminder of what happens when you oppose them. Himawari s' body is out there rotting like some worthless dog ! "said Misaki. Her tears started flowing with a greater intensity. She gave up on trying to wipe them.

"They force every working person to give them a percentage of their pay. They claim it's for supporting their cause. People are struggling. We don't even know what they do with the money. Come to think of it, besides terrorising us, we don't really know what they do with their time."

"Why haven't you tried to get help from the outside ?"

"Who do we cry out to ? Even if we run away, where do we run to ? Our whole lives are here," said Misaki.

"Where can we find these shinobi ? " said Hinata.

"Don't tell me you are planning to take them on as you are ? There's only two of you and four of them," exclaimed Misaki.

"Only four ? How is that any fun," Gaara said with a smirk.

"Don't worry we'll be alright. Have some faith in us," said Hinata. Misaki was unconvinced.

"There's no need to look for them. They will be the ones that come looking for me. I won't fail to catch their attention ," said Gaara.

He straightened up from his leaning position against the wall. There was a faint poof. His sand gourd materialised out of thin air. He had sealed it when they had entered the village. The presence of the gourd was detrimental to keeping a low profile. Misaki struggled to believe what her eyes were showing her. Gaara secured the gourd on his back. The cocoa brown strap of the gourd felt rough to the touch. The weight of the gourd still felt strange on his back after having not carried it for years.

"Okay. I'll just pretend I did not see something materialize from thin air, " said Misaki.

"I'll confront those shinobi on my own," said Gaara.

"Are you insane," shouted Misaki.

"You don't have to shelter me. I am not a child. I'm a jounin. Why do you doubt my abilities after you've known me for so long ?" replied Hinata.

"I was just being considerate of the fact that you might be a bit tired from the journey. I am fully aware of your abilities. You of all people should know that I have never doubted you, " replied Gaara.

Hinata looked away. Gaara turned around and took a few steps towards the door. He stopped and looked back to Hinata.

"Are you coming or what ?" said Gaara.

Hinata stood and slung her beige travel pack over her shoulders. She turned to Misaki who was sitting on the plastic chair on her right. She flashed her a smile. The strange eyed woman was too nice to be a kunoichi in Misaki s' opinion.

"Don't worry, everything will be over soon," said Hinata.

"Gaara, is it ?" Misaki said to the marroon haired man in the knee length coat. Gaara nodded.

Misaki stood up and moved next to him.The light above their heads was casting a glow on her tear streaked face. Her eyes were filled with desperation.

"Promise me you'll make them suffer for what they did to Himawari. Promise me you'll avenge my friend, " Misaki said with tears slowly sliding down her face.

"I have no right to make anyone pay for their sins with all the things I have done," Gaara replied.

Gaara walked away. Hinata placed her hand on Misaki s' shoulder. It lingered for a moment. She followed Gaara out of the house.

Misaki held herself as she sobbed. For reasons beyond her, she had faith that the two strangers would save her village. She cried because she realised that maybe Himawari would still be alive if they had come sooner. She despised the injustice of life. She cried until her back hurt.

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A desire seized Gaara and Hinata s' hearts as they dashed through the streets. The desire was a raging inferno. They both knew this feeling as though it were an old friend. Every shinobi knew it well. The feeling filled you with a desperate longing to achieve your mission. The feeling was inescapable. It was in their blood. The feeling made you feel as if achieving your mission was the reason you were alive. It filled you with a tremendous sense of purpose. This feeling was so powerful it could bring meaning to an existence that felt meaningless.

Gaara loved this feeling. He had once lived for this feeling. Focusing all his attention on the suffering on his victim would make him feel as if there was a reason he was alive. He had grown addicted to the sense of purpose the feeling gave him and had grown addicted to his demon-fuelled sadistic tendencies. Focusing on his sadistic goals would get rid of the emptiness within him for a while. But that was over now. He had found meaningful reasons to live. The woman besides him was one of them.

The buildings were indistinguishable blurs in the corners of Gaara s' vision. They were heading to a park he had once passed by. They needed space for the inevitable fight.Things could get messy. Bringing harm to the village and its people had to be avoided.

They arrived at the park. It was located in the outskirts of the village. The row of trees that surrounded the perimeter of the park cast sinister shapes in the night light. The moon provided sufficient illumination for him not to be handicapped while fighting. Fighting in the dark was not an issue for Hinata s' gifted eyes. The open area was large enough and far enough from the majority of the village s' infrastructure. Although, certain jutsu had to be avoided. They were too close to the village for such jutsu.

Gaara looked at Hinata. Her byakugan was bright in the dark. She nodded. It was time to bring an end to the chaos and terror that had been brought upon this village.

Gaara released a pulse of chakra. The pulse of chakra hit the village like a tidal wave. Raw, electrifying chakra spread through the village like a deadly forest fire. The pulse of chakra was short lived- like a flare shooting through the sky. Any shinobi within threemiles would have felt the burst of chakra.

Hinata gulped as she felt Gaara s' chakra. This was the power of a jinchuriki. The power of the feared Sand Demon of Suna. She sometimes forget how the man she loved harboured such power. The fact that all this power had once been directed at her comrades left a bitter taste in her mouth.

Minutes passed. Then they felt it. Four unsuppressed chakra signatures were heading their way. Hinata, who had a great affinity for sensory, could almost taste their chakra. She retrieved the only kunai she had from her travel pack. The cries of an owl tore through the night sky. The leaves rattled. The air was thick with anticipation.

Four dark figures leaped past their heads and landed at the edge of the park near the trees. The poor lighting made it difficult for Gaara to distinguish their features.

"This can't be..." whispered Hinata. Her face was wrought with confusion.

The four figures stepped away from the cover of the dark. The pale glow of the full moon sat upon them. Gaara s' eyes, like Hinata s' own, were glued on their foreheads. On the cold metal plates of their hitai-ates was the insignia of Konohagakure no Sato.

To be continued...

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Thanks for reading. I'm sorry for taking so long to update. I promise the next update will be sooner than you expect.

please review, review and review some more

Thanks a lot A Mechanism of The Dented Kind your advice about the position of the comma was really helpful.

Thanks to everyone that took their time to review

please let me know what you think about my story.

{The Immortal Sage}


	5. Chapter 5

But I, being poor, have only my dreams I have spread my dreams under your feet. Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.

* * *

Hinata was at a loss for words. Her shock had renderedred her mute. To think that the mysterious oppressors they had come to confront were shinobi from the village she had tearfully resolved to die for all those summers ago.

One of the men had a long face, black wispy hair and a lanky build. He was pale and looked like he had not had a good night 's rest in years. He reminded Hinata of the socially awkward and often misunderstood intellectuals that worked in the labs back in Konoha. The man standing besides him was a short haired man of average build that had a tan complexion. The woman besides the short-haired man had a fierceness and aggression that stood out in her grass green eyes. She had custard blonde hair that was tied into a ponytail. Her features were plain. The three of them appeared to be in their mid twenties.

The third man stood a few steps in front of the rest. He seemed to be in his mid thirties and had thick brown hair that was receding at the hairline. His face had a gruesome scar that covered his cheek. His face showed signs of chronic insomnia. His demeanour hinted that he was the leader of the group. His almond brown eyes indicated that he was a man who was past the point of polite smiles and who no longer valued people 's opinions. Hinata sensed a tiredness from him that was not borne of physical exhaustion.

His eyes made Hinata 's heart thump just a bit faster. She was familiar with such eyes. Gaara 's eyes had been like that once. She sometimes saw those eyes in her nightmares. They were the eyes of a man that was plunging deeper and deeper into the infinite pit of madness.

The shinobi were dressed in uniforms that had a design that was identical to that of Konoha 's uniforms but were a deep black instead of navy blue like those of Konoha. Their uniforms were without any insignia.

"Are my eyes playing tricks on me or am I seeing a Hyuga heiress that's supposed to be dead ? "said the short haired man. His hands were in his pockets. He reminded Hinata of Shikamaru.

"She's a Hyuga, that's for sure. You can never mistake those damn eyes, " said the blonde woman.

"I'm pretty certain that's her," said the short haired man.

"They told us you were dead princess. "

"I take it you're not operating here on behalf of Konoha," said Gaara.

"Woah. What's with the serious dude princess ? Why are you hanging around such a guy ?" the short haired man said to Hinata before yawning deeply.

"Our loyalty towards Konoha was merely a misguided act of the past. We have servered the ties we had to Konoha," the lanky man replied to Gaara. He was an odd shinobi.

"Defectors huh ?" said Gaara.

"What is it that you want ?" said the man with the scar.

"We were just passing through and realised that there was something strange going on in this village. We asked around and discovered there's a couple of shinobi terrorising the village. We thought we could have a word with them, " said Hinata. She had regained her witts.

"Have a word with them ? And what were you planning on saying to these shinobi ? " said the man with the scar.

"We were intending on asking them to leave the villagers in peace," replied Hinata. The short haired man chuckled. A mirthless smile appeared on the scarred man 's face.

"And if these shinobi refused ?" asked the man with the scar.

"Then we would not be asking so nicely anymore," said Gaara.

"Unfortunately that cannot happen. We cannot relinquish our control over this village. It's for a cause that is so much greater than us," replied the man with the scar.

"A greater cause ?" said Hinata.

"Bringing peace to the world," said the lanky man. His words were brimming with conviction.

"What you are doing here has nothing to do with peace. The only thing you are doing is to make the villagers suffer and live in fear," said Hinata.

"You defected from Konoha just so that you could terrorise defenceless civilians ? "

"You have no idea what you are talking about Hyuga ! That is not the reason why we left Konoha ! " said the blonde woman.

"You have such gifted eyes but you fail to see what is in front of you. Do you not see Konoha for what it truly is ? Do you not see what they put us through by having us fight in their dirty conflicts and senseless wars ? " said the man with the scar.

"You've had a first hand experience of the nightmare that is war. I can see it in your eyes," the short haired man drawled.

"Then you must understand why we walked away from Konoha. We refused to remain pawns in their senseless game," said the man with the scar.

"I'm assuming it's the same reason why all of Konoha believes that the Hyuga heiress is dead and yet here you are. You couldn't take it anymore and you decided to run away, " said the short haired man.

"Have you never asked yourself what our friends, our family, our comrades died for ? " said the lanky man.

"What exactly did they die for ? What did they throw their lives away for ? For absolutely nothing. They died because of the worthless pride that Konoha 's leaders have," shouted the blonde woman. Her words sent a shiver down Hinata 's spine.

"I lost my best friend to the war. Not a day goes by where I do not wake up in the morning and think that maybe my best friend would still be alive if I had opened my eyes sooner and convinced him to walk away from the madness. But I didn't do that. I honestly thought we were giving up our lives for something meaningful," said the short haired man. His eyes were averted to the trees as he spoke.

"I have fought for Konoha throughout two wars my life. I'm damn tired of remaining a pawn in their game, " said the man with the scar.

"But what does any of that have to do with occupying this village ?" said Gaara.

"Imagine a world without war and strife. A world where no mother ever has to receive the news of her son or daughter dying on the battlefield. A peaceful world ," said the man with the scar.

"We are going to create such a world. We are the light that will shed light onto a dying world," said the blonde woman.

"That still doesn't explain why you took over this village, " said Hinata.

"This is all just a part of the plan to achieve world peace, " said the man with the scar.

"I'm guessing you're not willing to elaborate on that plan, " said Gaara.

"That would ruin the surprise," said the short haired man.

"I have a nephew back home. He's ten years old. He has dreams of being a shinobi. I never want him to go through what I've gone through in my life as a shinobi, " said the man with the scar.

"What about beating the villagers half to death? What about killing a defenceless civilian ? Is that your idea of peace ? " said Hinata.

"Sometimes you have to be a monster in order to achieve the greater good. That is how the world is. We were born into this world, we didn't make it, " said the man with the scar.

"Was raping a defenceless girl for the greater good ? " said Hinata.

"What happened to the girl was a mistake but the man you saw at the gates had to be put down. It was for the greater good. The villagers were supposed to learn what happens when you get in the way of our purpose, " said the man with the scar.

"We can see that you have seen the world for what it truly is. Join us and we will fix the world together," said the lanky man.

"We owe it to our comrades that died in vain. We owe it to the future generations to make things right."

"Our movement is open to all those who wish. Join us in ushering this world into a true era of peace. The bloodshed has to end at some point, " said the man with the scar.

"This is not the way, " said Hinata.

"Listen sweetheart, you don't have to look at us like that. You cannot change the world through smiles and polite words. We are doing what is necessary, " said the short haired man.

Hinata was not a fool. She knew it would take more than that to bring peace to the world but oppressive and forceful action was not the solution. She honestly did not know the solution that was needed to fix their dark world. People were stiff necked, proud and deaf to reason. Despite that, she knew that this was not the way to go about it.

"I know that smiles won't change the world. But losing what little humanity we have left to achieve peace, an involuntary peace, is not worth it, " said Hinata.

Gaara did not know what to believe or what to say when it came to such matters of humanity and morality. He did not possess a strong moral compass. Unlike Hinata, he did not feel compelled to do what she often described as doing the right thing. He prioritised Hinata and himself over was the reason he had been hesitant to get involved in this village 's matters.

"I was wrong about you girl. It seems you have not felt the true pain of war," said the man with the scar.

"Walk away now and you walk away with no broken bones and with your pride intact, " said Gaara.

Gaara and Hinata saw the resistance in the eyes of the members of The Light. The same unbending resistance was evident in their own eyes. It was a tremendous battle of wills between a driven group of shinobi versus Hinata who felt compelled to help the villagers and the powerhouse from Suna that would walk down the valley of death for her. It was a battle between an unstoppable force and an unmovable object.

"I would rather die than to abandon this cause, " said the man with the scar.

His life had lost any other purpose. All other goals and ambitions had been lost in the wind. Achieving his goal of ushering the world into an era of peace was the only reason he chose to carry on with this joyless existence. Bringing true peace, one that would never be destroyed. It was the reason he found the strength to wake up in the morning. He would fight for this cause until he took his last dying breath.

With explosive speed, man with the scar threw a pair of kunai at Hinata and Gaara. Sand shot up from Gaara 's gourd. The flight of the kunai was halted. The night grew even more silent. Recognition and an embarrassingly profound fear appeared in the eyes of Hinata and Gaara 's adversaries.

"The Sand Demon of Suna," said the man with the scar. A terrible scowl was on his face.

Their faces were grim as they looked at Gaara. The blonde woman was looking at him as if he was the repulsive spawn of the devil. All of them now had their weapons bared. Hinata noticed the trembling of their hands. She noticed the drop of perspiration that was traveling down the short haired man 's forehead and the blonde woman 's dilating pupils. The lanky man, the woman and the short haired man 's eyes kept darting around as if considering routes of escape. The eyes of the man with the scar steadily remained on Gaara 's own. The short haired man was holding a katana similar to the ones that were logged into Himawari 's torso.

"I never believed the rumours from the start. I knew that the sand demon wouldn't just keel over and die or just disappear into thin air," said the lanky man.

"I'm seriously wondering why such a nice girl like you is running around with such a bloodthirsty monster," the short haired man said to Hinata.

"What do we do now ? " said the blonde woman.

"We fight, " said the man with the scar.

The blonde woman 's eyes grew wide. The lanky man struggled to swallow. The short haired man 's grip tightened around the hilt of his sword.

"What I'd give to be anywhere but here, " mumbled the short haired man.

The short haired man jumped at Hinata with his raised katana. His unsuccessful strikes were pushing Hinata backwards, luring her away from Gaara. His comrades started flinging kunai at Gaara. A wall of sand blocked the trajectory of the kunai. The lanky man and the woman jumped to Gaara 's sides and threw kunai in synch with the man with the scar who was facing Gaara 's front. A whirlwind of sand formed around him and deflected the kunai. Gaara gave them an unimpressed look.

Hinata continuously blocked the short haired man 's strikes with a kunai. His kenjutsu was good. Her shorter blade, the man 's superior strength and his larger build was putting her at a disadvantage. He made a wide slash. Hinata did a back flip and landed in a crouch. She jumped away. Her opponent 's sword stabbed the spot where she had been standing a moment ago. Hinata lashed out with a soaring kick. The man jumped out of the way. She landed in a crouch and straightened up. Hinata smiled. It had been a while since she had fought anyone other than Gaara.

"You're pretty good fighter for such a pretty girl. You and I would be a great match don't you think ? " said the short haired man.

Hinata tossed a glance at Gaara. His arms were crossed while his opponents were throwing all they had at him. He was barely paying his opponents any attention. His opponents were getting more frustrated by the minute. The look in the eyes of the man with the scar worried her. He was looking more and more unhinged by the second. Unhinged opponents were deadly.

"Let's toss aside the blades for a bit," Hinata said to her opponent.

"I'd rather not sweetheart. I prefer things the way they are, " said the short haired man.

The short haired man blocked Hinata 's blow. They traded blows back and forth. It became an unpredictable dance. The screams of steel bounced in the air around them. Sparks flew in the night light. The short haired man was growing frustrated. The Hyuga wasn't putting nearly as much effort into the fight as he was.

Hinata performed a shushin and appeared behind the man. Her opponent 's reaction was a split second too slow. Her open palm made contact with his shoulder. Pain exploded in the man 's shoulder. The pain burned like molten but lasted only a second. Numbness followed. His arm dropped limply to his side. The man jumped away from Hinata 's reach.

"You're a dangerous girl, Hyuga, " said the short haired man.

"Damn. I can't feel my arm."

"If you just leave the village you won't have to go through this," said Hinata.

The smoky scent of explosive tags was abundant in the air. In quest of attempting to penetrate Gaara 's sandy defence, the short haired man 's comrades had turned to explosive tags. Their attempts were fruitless. Gaara remained with his arms crossed.

A kunai sailed towards Hinata. Hinata twisted her body to evade the projectile. The blonde woman substituted herself with the kunai. The woman swung her leg in a kick while mid air. Hinata blocked the woman 's leg. Her forearm screamed in pain. Hinata pushed the woman away. She threw a kick at the blonde woman. The blonde woman vanished just as Hinata 's foot touched her. The short haired man appeared behind Hinata. He swung his katana at her with his single functioning arm. Hinata substituted herself with a pebble behind him. The man narrowly avoided her palm. He vanished then appeared besides the blonde woman.

"Thought you might need a hand, " said the blonde woman.

"She's fast and her cute little hands are deadly. The craziest part of it is that I think I'm in love, " said the short haired man.

"Get over yourself. Don't let yourself get distracted just because of a pretty face, " said the woman.

"You know I've never been able to resist a pretty face," the short haired man said.

"You are disgusting, " said the woman.

The short haired man and his female comrade launched a joint assault on Hinata. Hinata was on the defensive. She evaded and blocked the woman 's kunai and her comrade 's katana. None of their blows were landing. Their attacks were pushing her back. She did not have a chance to be on the offensive.

Gaara watched Hinata from the corner of his eye. His sand shot a kunai in her direction. The kunai cut in the small space between her and the blonde woman. The blonde woman jumped back to avoid the kunai. Hinata grabbed it's hilt mid air. Hinata could now defend herself more effectively now that she had two kunai. Hinata shifted to the offensive. She started pushing them back with her attacks. Her opponents leaped away.

Hinata assessed her enemies. They highly above average chunin level. They were good but she was better. Despite not being in the shape she had been in while fighting in the war, she was more than capable of fighting two chunin simultaneously. Hinata 's days of weakness had been over for a long time and they were never coming back.

Fighting with weapons was not Hinata 's forte. She was decent but mediocre at best. Fighting them in pure hand to hand combat would turn the tides of the fight. Hinata dropped her kunai. She slid into a stance. She raised her arms into the air in the way she had been taught since childhood. There was no stance that was more familiar to her than the one she was currently in. She had spent hours upon hours practicing this stance in her childhood in her quest of becoming powerful enough to earn her cold father 's approval.

"You know, you don't fight like most Hyuga," said the short haired man.

"Relying solely on your clan 's techniques puts you at a disadvantage. Your moves become predictable. Also, your growth as a fighter is hampered if you don't incorporate diverse styles into your technique," said Hinata. It felt like a lifetime since Lee had said those exact words to her.

"You would make a powerful addition to our cause," said the blonde woman.

"I think I'll pass," replied Hinata.

"So tell me. How did you get the Sand Demon to act so normal ? I heard he was such a savage that his very own village failed to tame him, " said the short haired man. Hinata ignored his words.

Hinata pumped chakra into her legs. She charged at the woman. The short haired man appeared behind her. Hinata spun around. Her chakra enhanced foot connected to his cheek in a vicious kick. The painful sound of the collision rang in the air. The man went soaring in the air.

The look in Hinata 's eyes unnerved the blonde woman. She staggered back as the Hyuga 's open palm landed on her body. She gasped as pain exploded on her side. She grew fearful as the Hyuga 's palm neared her body once more. She tried to move awaybut the sharp pain on her side made her body react too slowly. Another devastating hit landed on her. Then another. Then another. Then another. Then another. Then another.

The blonde woman dropped to the ground like a discarded sack of potatoes. She failed to move her body and to channel any chakra through it. There was a sharp pain coming from one of her kidneys. She coughed up blood for a moment. Each cough was agony. Her face contorted in pain and discomfort. The only other feeling she was experiencing that was greater than the feeling of pain was the feeling of humiliation.

The short haired man watched his female comrade drop to the ground as he returned to the scene. He clenched his jaw in frustration. His clenched jaw screamed in pain because of the abuse it had taken from the Hyuga 's kick. He hated how theywere being annalihated by the soft-spoken Hyuga.

Gaara stood motionless as his opponents tried to penetrate his defense. Their attempts were futile. None of their projectiles nor jutsu had penetrated his defense. Only three people had ever been able to get past his sand and they were far above the calibre of his current opponents. It was time to bring things to an end.

The short haired man dropped to his knees. He could barely stand anymore because of the pain he was in. He was seeing dark spots in his vision. He shook his head in an attempt to clear his vision. Despite his stubborn nature, even he could see that he was defeated.

The man with the scar rose to his feet. He was trembling all the while. His lanky comrade was attempting but failing to get to his feet. An intense disorientation was holding him captive. He had been caught by the demon 's sandy tentacles and had been tossed around like a ragdoll then his head had suffered a bone cracking collision with the ground. The man had potentially sustained a concussion.

The man with the scar 's lip was busted. He was breathing through his mouth due to his nose being broken. The left side of his face was burning because of the friction burn that had been caused by the sand. He suspected that his ribs were broken. The Sand Demon was as ruthless as they said. When he got his hands on you he made sure to teach you the true meaning of pain. He could not fathom why he had not killed them yet. This beast knew one thing and one thing only - killing. So why were they still alive ?

The man with the scar watched the Hyuga making her way to them. No, this could not be happening. These people were getting in the way of their goal. Who were they to get in the way of their purpose ? How dare they oppose them ? Didn't they see that they were doing this for them ? Didn't they see that they were doing this for their children and all the future generations to come ? He only wanted his nephew to never go through war like he had.

These people were just like the man they had executed. They too were against their goal of putting a permanent end to the bloodshed and strife taking place in their world. They preferred the world as it was. They loved conflict. Hefelt an overwhelming rage take over him. It burned like molten and flowed through his veins and gathered around his heart. All those that opposed their mission had to be eliminated.

He slowly and painfully retrieved a storage scroll from the pouch on his lower back. He unsealed the contents of the scroll. The Sand Demon and the Hyuga did not stop him. Explosives materialised at his feet.

"All those that oppose us have to be destroyed. It seems like we are going to need to use something with a bit more firepower to destroy you Gaara of the Desert," said the man.

"I will not allow you to stand in the way of peace."

"All those that oppose us have to be destroyed. It seems like we are going to need to use something with a bit more firepower to destroy you Gaara of the Desert," said the man.

"I will not allow you to stand in the way of peace. All those that wish to hinder our goal have to be killed."

"All those that oppose us have to be destroyed, " he repeated. He felt his conviction growing.

So much had been lost. So many good men and women had died fighting in the foolish war that had been fought for so long. Each one of them had a name. They had loved, they had hated and they had cried. Each one of them had dreams,hopes and many of them had lost their lives.

"All those that oppose us have to be destroyed, " he found himself saying once more.

"All those that oppose us have to be destroyed."

The Sand Demon said something but he did not care about what he was saying. He started seeing images of his memories on the battlefield. He started hearing voices in his head. He could not understand their whispers but they were torturing him. His nephew and his sister appeared in the images playing in his head. The voices grew louder but he still could not hear what they were saying. He felt as if a thousand eyes were watching him. All of them were disappointed because he had failed to bring peace to the world. He felt hot tears sliding down his face. The voices were torturing him.

"All those that oppose us have to be destroyed !" he heard a voice shout. It took him a moment to realise that it was his own.

"You have lost your mind, " the Sand Demon said.

"No, I have never seen things with greater clarity. I have do what I must to destroy all those that oppose us," said the man with the scar.

"It's the only way to achieve our goal."

He brought his fingers together and formed the snake seal in order to activate the explosives. This savage had to be eliminated. The explosives would surely take him out. They could carry on with their mission soon after.

"What is Itsuki doing ? I think he might be losing it, " the short haired man said.

"If he detonates those explosives we will all be caught in the blast - the villagers included," said Aiko.

The short haired man appeared next to the man with the scar. He was carrying his katana with his one good arm.

"Itsuki stop, " said the short haired man.

The man with the scar noticed his short haired comrade after a few moments. His words registered soon after. It was hard to concentrate on what the people were him were saying with all the voices he was hearing in his head.

"This will surely take out the Sand Demon," said Itsuki.

"You cannot do that. This whole village will be caught in the blast," said the short haired man. Itsuki 's tear streaked face twisted in rage.

"I have to detonate these explosives. I have to ! All those that oppose us have to be destroyed !" sobbed Itsuki.

"Itsuki, " said the short haired man.

The man with the scar failed to understand his comrade. Why was he not seeingreason ? Was he not the one that had dealt the finishing blow when they had executed the villager ? He was doing what was necessary, just like they had done with the man whose corpse was hanging at the gates.

"Listen Itsuki - " the short haired man started. Hefroze as Itsuki once again formed the handseal required to detonate the explosives. The short haired man saw the look in Itsuki 's eyes. There was no convincing him to stop. He was dead set on destroying the Sand Demon and the Hyuga. Itsuki 's eyes were wide open and had a faraway look.

"It's time to pay for your sins Sand Demon, " said Itsuki.

Itsuki heard his short haired comrade speaking once more. He processed his words after a while. His words were not making sense.

"Thanks for always looking out for me brother."

Itsuki felt an extreme discomfort. He finally realised that the discomfort was coming from his throat. He was having trouble breathing and he felt something wet gushing down his throat. Itsuki slowly looked down to his neck. It took him a second to realise that there was a katana that was logged deep into his throat. He realised that the katana belonged to his comrade. The world started getting dark and soon drifted into nothingness. By the time he dropped to the ground, his body was lifeless.

The blonde woman screamed as Itsuki collapsed on the ground with a dull thud. The short haired manpulled his katana out of Itsuki 's throat. Blood flowed from the wound like water from a fountain. He delicately pulled down Itsuki 's eyelids and covered his horror stricken eyes.

The lanky man got to his feet. He was clutching his head with one hand. He seemed disoriented but he was aware of what had happened. His eyes met the short haired man 's own. A wave of emotions passed in the lanky man 's eyes. He nodded to the short haired man. The short haired man retrieved a storage scroll from one of his weapons pouches. He sealed away Itsuki 's body with trembling hands.

"What have you done Akinari ! " shouted Aiko.

The short haired man whose name waa Akinari walked over to her with his katana in his hand. He sheathed his katana and bent down to her. The blonde woman went into a frenzy.

"You killed Itsuki ! " she screamed.

"I had no choice. I had to stop him. He was too far gone to see reason," said Akinari.

"You should have knocked him out ! " screamed Aiko with tears in her eyes.

"That would have not helped in the long run. He was too far gone, " muttered Akinari. The short haired man man made a grab for Aiko.

"Don't touch me, " screamed Aiko.

"Do not touch me ! "

Akinari had never seen Aiko in such a state. She was usually the strongest among the four of them. Well, there were three of them now. Theshort haired man did not heed her protests. Heslung her paralysed body over his shoulder and dragged himself over to the lanky man.

"Looks like you won, " Akinari said to Gaara and Hinata.

Hinata averted her eyes. It did not feel as if they had won anything with what had transpired that night. She blinked away her tears. It was in moments like these where she found herself despising the world they had been born in.

"We'll be making our leave, " said the lanky man.

"This is not the last you hear of us. I have feeling we'll meet again," said Akinari.

Gaara and Hinata watched the remaining members of The Light disappear into the night.

"Atleast the villagers won't have to suffer anymore, " Gaara said to Hinata.

Hinata looked up at Gaara and smiled at him. Both of them knew that her smile was not real.

* * *

"We can never repay you for what you've done for us, " said Arata.

Hinata and Gaara had spent the night at Arata 's home. They had returned to Misaki 's home after the battle. Hinata had insisted on telling her that they had succeeded in defeating the shinobi that had terrorised them. Misaki had stared at them in utter disbelief. After a while she had asked them if they had avenged Himawari. Hinata had replied that vengeance had never been their goal.

Hinata had said goodbye to Misaki and told her that they were going to search for a place to sleep. Misaki had insisted on them spending the night at her grandparents 's home instead of paying for a place to sleep.

"You will never have to pay us back, " replied Hinata.

A crowd had formed at the gates. The villagers had wanted to see their saviours. Most of them were in a state of disbelief. Some of them even believed that they were being tricked into believing that their oppressors had been defeated.

The Light had brought them misery for nearly a month and yet the state of the park was the only evidence there was of them ever being there. The other evidence was the body of Himawari that was being taken down.

"We will forever be indebted to you," said the plump red-faced town leader.

"Here's something for the road," bellowed Arata as he handed them a bag full of confectionaries.

"I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed your cinnamon rolls on my birthday. It really made my day, " Hinata said to Arata.

"You are always welcome to come back and have some more," replied Arata. He was a loud man.

Hinata and Gaara turned around to leave. They had a long journey ahead of them. It was best if they made use of daylight to cover as much distance as they could.

"Wait, " Misaki said them. They stopped walking. Misaki moved closer.

"I haven't seen the villagers so happy in a long time. They weren't even this happy before those monsters set foot here, " said Misaki. Hinata merely smiled back.

"Promise me you'll visit us sometime."

"If chance allows us to meet again then we are going to meet again," replied Gaara.

"Have a nice trip, " said Misaki.

Hinata found Misaki 's words ironic. There was nothing nice about their journey. Hinata felt as if they were cattle that were journeying to the slaughter house.

Hinata and Gaara walked past a group that was weeping at the gates. Two people there were crying above rest. It was an aging woman and a girl their age that deeply resembled the woman. They wept as they followed a group of men that was carrying Himawari 's cloth covered corpse. A pair of bloody katana was lying in the dust.

The horror of war had jumped borders and ruined the lives of people that had been so distant from it. If the war had not happened Himawari would still be alive and Itsuki would have not lost his mind and died a meaningless death. Hinata did not resent Itsuki for all his deeds. He was merely a product of the war.

* * *

A week later...

Hinata looked up at the sound of the creaking wood above their heads. The voices of the crew penetrated the wooden were resting in a cabin on the lower deck of the ship. They had been at sea for almost a day. At this rate they would travel at sea and on land for two days before they reached Suna.

Hinata was currently sandwiched between Gaara 's arms. He was running his fingers up and down her arm. Gaara was addicted to physical contact. For the longest time, Gaara had craved just to touch the hand of another human being but had never been given the chance. Despite craving touch, it had been difficult for him to trust Hinata enought to let her touch him. In fact it had been difficult for him to allow himself to trust her in anything. Hinata wasn't complaining though. She didn't mind his touch.

Gaara loathed ships. He loathed them with all his being. In fact it was a loathing that was mixed with fear. He was afraid of ships. He did not know why. He did not know when the fear had developed. He remembered the day when he first saw a picture of a ship in one of the books his uncle had bought. The idea of a traveling in such as vessel had shaken him to the core. He had soon developed an irrational fear of sailing.

Maybe it was because he felt so disconnected from the earth. Maybe it was because he was felt so separated from the source of his element- he did not know. All he knew was that he would be prefer to almost anywhere but here. Almost anywhere. Hinata 's presence was the only comfort at the moment.

Hinata 's fingers were playing with the silver ring that was hooped around the necklace on her neck. Her fingers were continuously brushing the precious metal band. Travelling by ship was tedious. They would have crossed the sea in less time if they had been traveling by foot instead of sailing. Gaara had insisted on traveling by ship.

Nothing of interest had occurred in the week after their confrontation with The Light. Well, besides having bandits attempt to rob them. The poor bandits would never look at sand the same way after what Gaara had done to them. Gaara 's actions had caused an argument between him and Hinata. Hinata had said that he had overdone it. Gaara had argued that the bandits needed to be taught a lesson they would never forget. She did not tell him that she was angry but as always the looks she had given him and the silent treatment had told him she was angry.

"Are you sure you're okay ? " Hinata said to Gaara.

"I'm fine," said Gaara. He slipped his fingers into one of her hands.

"You don't sound fine. And you're really tense. And your fingers are trembling," replied Hinata. Her voice was filled with concern.

"Gaara ? " Hinata said. Minutes had passed and Gaara had still not responded.

"I hate ships. I've hated anything to do with ships or sailing ever since I was a boy," said Gaara.

"Then why did you insist on traveling by ship ? "said Hinata.

"Because it will take us longer to reach the Land of Wind, "Hinata answered herself.

Everything was now making sense. Gaara did not want to go back to what they left behind. He did not want to go back to Suna. He would rather do something he hated with all his heart such as traveling by ship just to postpone their arrival. It was a desperate act of buying time. If it was up to him, if she didn't need the closure they were returning back for, he would never set foot on the continent. Hewas doing all this for her. It was all for her.

"Gaara ? " Hinata said.

"What is it ? " said Gaara.

"I love you, " said Hinata. Gaara was surprised by the random declaration of affection.

"So do I, " he replied.

"We are in this together. No matter what, " said Hinata.

"This moment reminds of the moment where Riku proposes to Akari, " Gaara whispered close to Hinata 's ear. His warm breath tickled her eye. Hinata shot up.

"So you admit that you read The Samurai And The Merchant 's Daughter. You lied to me. You told me I was seeing things when I said that it kept changing positions on the bookshelf, " Hinata said frantically.

"I knew it. Even Mito told me I was seeing things."

"Calm down," Gaara said as he pulled her back to his chest.

"I knew it, " Hinata said with a satisfied smile.

"I get it, " said Gaara.

"I knew it, " Hinata replied in a singsong voice.

Gaara felt some of the tension ease out of his body. He momentarily forgot that they were on a ship. No matter what came, they were in this together. There was one person atleast that would have his back when he faced the world. There would be one person that would stand by the monster as the world looked on with hatred and fear.

The wind was blowing strongly. More than half a day had passed since Gaara and Hinata had entered the Land of Wind. They had travelled past the Un mountains and the Desert of Vast was currently drinking from a canteen. Her head was covered by a black scarf. Hinata felt horrible. The desert was a horrible place. She was glad she had decided to tie her hair into a braid.

Hinata watched Gaara 's hair blowing in the wind. His gaze was fixed at a point in the distance. The sand dune they were standing on was a good vantage point. She moved closer and stood next to him.

There was the place where they had grown close to each other in that winter that felt like a such a long time ago. It was where they had decided to run away and leave the war behind. It was the place where Hinata had pulled Gaara out of his insanity.

Gaara felt a torrent of emotions rushing within him. Some of which he did not know how to describe. He felt Hinata 's warm hand slip into his. He squeezed it in return. He felt himself drawing strength from her. In the horizon, beyond the towering sand dunes, was the village of Sunagakure no Sato.

* * *

Thanks for reading. Please please please review. Reviews are the fuel that keeps this engine running.

{The Immortal Sage}


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